May calls on internet giants to censor terrorists’ sites

THERESA MAY has called on Google and Facebook to do more to stop terrorists using their sites to plan attacks and fuel extremism, and will push for action when world leaders meet in New York next week.

In the wake of the crude bucket bomb attack at Parsons Green, internet giants faced criticism over how easy it was to find instructions in cyberspace to make such a device.

Mrs May will hold talks with Emmanuel Macron, the French president, on tackling terrorist and extremist propaganda on the web at the United Nations General Assembly.

In an interview with US broadcaster ABC News, she said: “One of the issues that we really need to be addressing, and I’ll be raising this when I’m at the United Nations, is the question of the use of the internet by terrorists for terrorist planning. But also this using it for the spread of extremism, of hatred, of propaganda that can incite and can inspire terrorism.” Asked if companies like Facebook and Google needed to act, she replied: “We’re talking to them about doing more. And indeed companies have come together.

“They formed a global forum to look at what they can do to be dealing with this more quickly and in a better way than they do at the moment. So we’re working with the companies.”

In the wide-ranging interview, Mrs May insisted she does “get on” with Donald Trump, the US President, and they “work very well together”. But she repeated her criticism over his tweets after the Tube blast, saying “I don’t think it’s helpful for anyone to speculate on what is an ongoing investigation”.

The delayed state visit will go ahead but it is “just a question of getting dates to, and sorting out the logistics,” she said. The PM also insisted she is “going to make sure that Brexit happens”