Nigel Farage demands apology from Minister who said the Reform leader is on Jimmy Savile's side
A row broke out this morning after Peter Kyle said the Reform UK leader is on the side of 'people like Jimmy Savile' over the party's pledge to scrap the Online Safety Act.
Farage labelled Technology Secretary Kyle's remarks as 'below the belt' and 'so absolutely disgusting that it's almost beyond belief', and urged people to sign a petition calling for the legislation to be repealed.
Former Reform chair Zia Yusuf said yesterday that the party would repeal the legislation if they got into Government.
'I see that Nigel Farage is already saying that he's going to overturn these laws,' Kyle told Sky News.
'So you know, we have people out there who are extreme pornographers, peddling hate, peddling violence. Nigel Farage is on their side.
'Make no mistake about it, if people like Jimmy Savile were alive today, he'd be perpetrating his crimes online. And Nigel Farage is saying that he's on their side.'
Responding to Kyle on a live stream this morning, Farage said: 'Just how low can the Labour Government sink in its desperation?
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'Yes, of course they're in trouble. They're well behind us in the opinion polls. But frankly, to say that I would do anything that would in any way aid and abet people like Jimmy Savile, it's so below the belt it's almost not true.'
He also reiterated his demand for an apology and added: 'We're not going to get one. I think perhaps the best thing we can do is to sign the petition to repeal the Online Safety Act. That's what I'm going to do today. I think it makes sense. I'm deeply worried about the implications for free speech.'
Under rules that came into effect on 25 July, online platforms such as social media sites and search engines must take steps to prevent children accessing harmful content such as pornography or material that encourages suicide.
Yusuf has said that the laws work to 'suppress freedom of speech' and 'force social media companies to censor anti-Government speech'.
After being asked by Farage to apologise on social media, Kyle doubled down on his comments, claiming that wanting to 'overturn' the Act puts somebody 'on the side of predators'.
Yusuf has claimed that Kyle's remarks showed 'how deeply unserious' the Government was about child safety, adding: 'Talking about Jimmy Savile in that way does nothing other than denigrate the victims of Jimmy Savile.'
He told Sky News that the comments are 'one of the most outrageous and disgusting things a politician has said in the political arena that I can remember. And that's quite a high bar, frankly.'
Prime Minister Keir Starmer jumped to defend the legislation from its critics when he met Donald Trump yesterday, telling reporters: 'We're not censoring anyone.
'We've got some measures which are there to protect children, in particular, from sites like suicide sites.'
Starmer added: 'I personally feel very strongly that we should protect our young teenagers, and that's what it usually is, from things like suicide sites. I don't see that as a free speech issue, I see that as child protection.'
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