Key facts
- Seven people, including two police officers, died in a head-on collision on the A66 in Middlesbrough.
- The collision occurred when a car driving the wrong way collided with a police vehicle.
- Defence minister Luke Pollard has asked social media companies to remove posts that celebrate dangerous driving.
- Pollard stated the government would use the Online Safety Act to compel platforms to remove such content if they do not self-regulate.
- Ofcom is investigating TikTok for its compliance with child safety duties regarding dangerous stunts.
Defence minister Luke Pollard has called on social media companies to remove content that celebrates dangerous driving following a fatal collision on the A66 in Middlesbrough that killed seven people, including two police officers. The crash occurred when a Volkswagen Passat, driven the wrong way on the A66, collided head-on with a marked armed response vehicle. Five young individuals aged between 17 and 23 in the Passat also died at the scene.
Pollard stated that his department has communicated with platforms hosting content that glorifies such behaviour, urging them to "step up" and remove it. He emphasized that the internet should be a safer place and that platforms should not financially incentivize the creation of dangerous content. Pollard added that if social media companies do not self-regulate, the government will use powers within the Online Safety Act to compel them to take down such material, noting that algorithms are designed to promote this type of content.
The incident occurred less than a week after five teenagers died in a similar crash involving a car driving the wrong way on the M9 motorway in Ireland. An Ofcom spokesperson confirmed that under the Online Safety Act, platforms are required to minimize children's exposure to content promoting dangerous stunts and challenges. Ofcom has launched an investigation into TikTok's compliance with its child safety duties, citing concerns about the effectiveness of its age-checking software. TikTok has denied that its content puts children at risk, stating it prohibits and removes videos and accounts that violate its rules against dangerous driving.