Heidi Alexander has doubled down on her fellow Cabinet minister’s claim that Nigel Farage is on the side of “people like Jimmy Savile”.
The Reform UK leader is “happy for there to be a free for all on the internet”, the Transport Secretary said, as she defended Peter Kyle’s comments.
The Technology Secretary had accused Mr Farage of being on the side of “extreme pornographers” over Reform’s pledge to scrap the Online Safety Act.
Asked if she agrees with Mr Kyle’s statement, Ms Alexander told Sky News: “Nigel Farage is, in effect, saying that he is on their side because he’s saying he’s wanting to repeal the Online Safety Act.
“I think that the position of Reform in saying that they want to repeal the entirety of the Online Safety Act, which is one of the most important pieces of legislation when it comes to the protecting of our children and the safety of young people online, I think that, in effect, what Nigel Farage is saying is that he’s totally happy for there to be a free for all on the internet.
“That’s not the position of the Labour Government. It’s not the position of me. It’s not the position of Keir Starmer or Peter Kyle, and that is the point that the Technology Secretary was rightly making yesterday.”
Mr Farage has demanded an apology from Mr Kyle, describing the remarks as “so absolutely disgusting that it’s almost beyond belief”.
Speaking to Sky News on Tuesday, the minister had said: “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.”
Following this, Clacton MP Mr Farage urged people to sign a petition calling for the legislation to be repealed.
Writing in the Telegraph, Mr Kyle said proposals to overturn the Act “makes my blood boil”, as he argued repealing it would benefit “disgusting predators who contact children and groom them online”.
He added: “I make no apologies for putting the interests of vulnerable children ahead of the interests of predators and child abusers – and the Reform leader’s ego.”
Also writing for the newspaper, Mr Farage said “all of this is of course a deflection from the real problem with the Online Safety Act”, as he raised concerns over ID checks.
He added: “In the name of safety, the Act poses the biggest threat to freedom of speech in this country in our lifetimes.
“In the name of protecting children, the law aims to regulate what adults are allowed to say or see – while doing nothing to make our children safer.”
Shadow foreign secretary Dame Priti Patel said making statements about overturning the Bill is “very lazy” and “not responsible”.
Under rules that came into effect on July 25, 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.
Sir Keir Starmer jumped to defend the legislation from its critics when he met Donald Trump on Monday, 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.”
The Prime Minister 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.”
