Conspiracy theory crackdown on royal rumour mill in the UK
BRITISH spies and ministers are setting up a unit to counter conspiracy theories amid alarm over untruths being spread about the royal family.
A cabinet minister said they are ‘very concerned’ about conspiracy theories regarding both Kate Middleton and King Charles
Kate’s photoshopped Mother’s Day photo only stoked growing online speculation about her.
The minister said social media-fuelled rumours about the royals ‘erode trust, make people ill and are a route to radicalisation’. The alert comes amid fears that foreign states, including Russia, are targeting MPs with misinformation and abuse, expected to increase in the run-up to the next UK elections.
MPs will be given additional support to combat the conspiracy theories that are flooding their inboxes – from the royal untruths to anti-vaxxer conspiracies and antisemitic messages.
MPs will be encouraged to reply to constituents who send them the theories amid concerns that silence enables the misinformation to grow.
The new service, being set up with the assistance of intelligence agencies, will also help MPs identify when messages and theories originate in the Kremlin.
Leader of the UK House of Commons Penny Mordaunt has been working on setting up the service for MPs, which is expected to start next week.
It will also check the contents of emails and help MPs come up with a comprehensive response.
In addition, MPs will soon be offered training to help them spot signs of antisemitism and conspiracy theories.
Security services have told MPs that the amount of extremist ‘chatter’ intercepted by spies has hit its highest level since the September 11 attacks in America.