Nigel Farage has accused Labour of plotting “appalling state censorship” after it emerged that the government is pressing ahead with proposed new powers to force social-media platforms to boost state-approved news sources.
The plans, set out in a recent Department for Culture, Media and Sport green paper, would explore a so-called “prominence regime” for social media and video-sharing platforms. In practice, this could mean platforms like YouTube being pushed to make content from public service broadcasters, including the BBC and Channel 4, more visible to users.
The Reform UK leader warned that these proposals would amount to direct political interference in what people are allowed to see online and described it as an attempt by Labour to “seize control of YouTube’s algorithm”.
“They want YouTube to artificially boost the BBC and Channel 4’s content, and suffocate independent journalists and producers”, Farage said.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy claimed this was necessary to ensure “that our regulated public service media is seen and heard in the fierce battle against mis- and disinformation”. This comes only days after Nandy flounced off X, saying that the platform promotes “abuse and misinformation over meaningful debate”.
Angela Rayner has given the game away, too. Speaking on LBC, she said Labour needed to “crack down on some of this rubbish that is being spouted out”, adding that “you shouldn’t be allowed to just get away with saying whatever you want.”
The government says the aim is to make “trustworthy” news easier to find online. But who decides what counts as trustworthy? In practice, this will mean boosting approved media and suppressing stories that challenge the consensus.
As Farage points out: “The BBC has been biased to pro-mass migration, open borders, and Net Zero views these past few decades. It’s part of the reason we’re in this mess. The BBC’s own internal reports admit and document some of this bias.”
People have moved to sites like X and YouTube precisely because they no longer trust the old media establishment to tell them the full truth. Labour’s answer is not to win back that trust, but to rig the digital public square in its favour.
Farage was clear that a Reform UK government would not stand for these attacks on free speech. “Reform will scrap this heavy-handed lunacy”, he said.
The plans, set out in a recent Department for Culture, Media and Sport green paper, would explore a so-called “prominence regime” for social media and video-sharing platforms. In practice, this could mean platforms like YouTube being pushed to make content from public service broadcasters, including the BBC and Channel 4, more visible to users.
The Reform UK leader warned that these proposals would amount to direct political interference in what people are allowed to see online and described it as an attempt by Labour to “seize control of YouTube’s algorithm”.
“They want YouTube to artificially boost the BBC and Channel 4’s content, and suffocate independent journalists and producers”, Farage said.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy claimed this was necessary to ensure “that our regulated public service media is seen and heard in the fierce battle against mis- and disinformation”. This comes only days after Nandy flounced off X, saying that the platform promotes “abuse and misinformation over meaningful debate”.
Angela Rayner has given the game away, too. Speaking on LBC, she said Labour needed to “crack down on some of this rubbish that is being spouted out”, adding that “you shouldn’t be allowed to just get away with saying whatever you want.”
The government says the aim is to make “trustworthy” news easier to find online. But who decides what counts as trustworthy? In practice, this will mean boosting approved media and suppressing stories that challenge the consensus.
As Farage points out: “The BBC has been biased to pro-mass migration, open borders, and Net Zero views these past few decades. It’s part of the reason we’re in this mess. The BBC’s own internal reports admit and document some of this bias.”
People have moved to sites like X and YouTube precisely because they no longer trust the old media establishment to tell them the full truth. Labour’s answer is not to win back that trust, but to rig the digital public square in its favour.
Farage was clear that a Reform UK government would not stand for these attacks on free speech. “Reform will scrap this heavy-handed lunacy”, he said.
