Social Media Firms to help Law Enforcement tackle small Boat Crossings, Illegal Immigration

London(UK), 08/08/23: UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced that social media companies will work with the National Crime Agency to crack down on posts encouraging asylum seekers to cross the Channel.

According to Rishi Sunak, the new collaboration between law enforcement and tech titans such as Facebook, TikTok, and Twitter will combat attempts to “lure” migrants into paying to make the risky voyage.

The Prime Minister wants to do rid of posts that offer group discounts, free spaces for minors, and bogus documents in order to fulfil his commitment to “stop the boats.”

The measure was criticised as “too little, too late” by Labour, and “tinkering around the edges” by the Liberal Democrats.

The voluntary partnership will attempt to divert individuals away from such content in the same manner that content inciting terrorism, violence or eating disorders is addressed.

A £11 million “online capability centre” will also be developed so that NCA officers may collaborate with the Home Office to report the promotional positions.

According to Downing Street, Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, as well as TikTok and X, formerly known as Twitter, have all agreed to the ideas.

“To stop the boats, we have to attack the business model of vile people smugglers at the source…That means clamping down on their attempts to lure people into making these illegal crossings and profit from putting lives at risk…This new commitment from tech firms will see us redouble our efforts to fight back against these criminals, working together to shut down their vile trade,” Mr Sunak said.

According to figures obtained by The Times and confirmed by the Home Office, 21,000 foreigners entered the UK unnoticed before applying for asylum.

The proposal on technology, according to Lib Dem home affairs spokesman Alistair Carmichael, is “tinkering around the edges when much larger reforms are required.”