Kemi: Tech bosses have become too powerful in regulating what we say

Ministers, MPs and activists gather in London to sound alert over freedom of speech, Robbie Griffiths reports

- Robbie Griffiths

BUSINESS Secretary Kemi Badenoch spoke up for freedom of speech at a major conference in London, sounding an alert over big tech companies taking control of what users see.

"When you have organisations that become so big, they effectively become more powerful than government in regulating what people say," Badenoch told a session at the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship conference in Greenwich. Internet companies like Google and Facebook have been criticised for taking the roles of regulator over what users are shown. Badenoch said the Online Safety Act would attempt to tackle the issue, but admitted the new law was too bloated. "I am a fan of smaller Bills," she said.

Badenoch's words chimed with the Evening Standard Freedom of Speech campaign, which has included focus on restrictive big tech by US author Michael Shellenberger.