Big Tech is considering leaving the UK because they are being swamped with more regulation than they see in the EU.
Ironically, one of the reasons the British left the UK was because they felt the were being unfairly burdened with red tape. Now, left to their own devices, UK politicians will make a lot more pointless laws.
Many tech companies are increasingly fed up with UK regulation. First up is the Online Safety Bill is due to pass in the autumn. Aimed at protecting children, it lays down strict rules around policing social media content, with high financial penalties and prison time for individual tech execs if the firms fail to comply.
Many of these companies are increasingly fed up.
Their "tipping point" is UK regulation - and it's coming at them thick and fast.
To safeguard children, a proposed Online Safety Bill establishes tough regulations on social media content, with severe consequences for tech CEOs who fail to comply.
In circumstances of national security or child protection issues, the bill also authorises encrypted messages to be examined and handed over to law enforcement.
The chief executive of Microsoft, Brad Smith, stated that the European Union is a more attractive place to start a business than the United Kingdom due to these regulatory issues.
WhatsApp and Signal, both of which provide end-to-end encryption, have threatened to exit the UK market in response to this demand.
Another major source of concern is the Digital Markets Bill, which empowers the UK’s competition watchdog to impose restrictions and penalties on giant corporations such as Amazon and Microsoft.
The UK’s Online Safety Bill promises to help law enforcement fight crime more effectively across the internet. Critics say its encryption provisions will force big tech out of the country.