A report from the British Telegraph reveals that the Labour government is actively using counter-terrorism infrastructure to monitor social media activity of patriotic citizens who oppose government policies—particularly those related to housing asylum seekers in hotels across the UK.
The UK’s so-called “National Strategic Outcome and Intervention Team”—functionally the British equivalent of the Soviet KGB, Romania’s Ceaușescu-era Securitate, and East Germany’s Stasi—has built an Orwellian surveillance system designed to identify what the government labels “concerning narratives” online. These narratives include any dissent or public criticism of its unelected policies.
This censorship apparatus has gone as far as compiling and sharing lists of online posts with platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook, targeting even completely legal content that challenges government decisions or encourages lawful protest. The dragnet surveillance escalated sharply after the 2024 demonstrations, which triggered confrontations between local residents and pro-asylum-seeker activist groups.
A blatantly dishonest spokesperson from the Home Office attempted to justify these actions under the guise of “public safety,” while simultaneously denying any political censorship—even as so many innocent British citizens are being arrested for expressing entirely lawful and legitimate opinions online.
While Conservative MP Tom Hunt has described this as a dangerous escalation, the reality is far clearer: this is a direct march toward authoritarianism. This form of state surveillance is not just a threat to civil liberties—it is a blatant assault on the democratic foundations of the country. It represents yet another example of the Labour government acting without a mandate from British voters, mirroring the governing style of totalitarian regimes across the world.