Parliament closes its TikTok account after MPs 'raise concerns over app's link to China'

Parliament’s TikTok account has been closed after MPs raised concerns about the social media firm’s links to China.

Use of the popular app, owned by a Chinese parent firm, had been part of a pilot to attempt to engage youngsters with the work of Parliament.

But the relationship between Westminster and Beijing has been severely strained after seven MPs and peers were sanctioned by the Chinese state.

TikTok’s parent firm ByteDance is based in China and MPs have raised concerns about user data being sent to Beijing.

A UK Parliament spokesman said: “Based on Member feedback, we are closing the pilot UK Parliament TikTok account earlier than we had planned.

“The account was a pilot initiative while we tested the platform as a way of reaching younger audiences with relevant content about Parliament.”

The account has been locked and its content has been deleted.

Followers of the account are met with an updated bio that reads: “This account is now closed. Find us at www.parliament.uk.”

In a letter to the Speakers of the Commons and Lords, seen by Politico, a group of MPs who have been sanctioned by the Beijing government for speaking out about human rights abuses reportedly complained about the TikTok account.

“The prospect of Xi Jinping’s government having access to personal data on our children’s phones ought to be a cause for major concern,” the letter reads.

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Theo Bertram, the app’s vice president for government relations and public policy in Europe, told MPs in July “we have never been asked to provide TikTok user data to the Chinese government, nor would we if asked”.

Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith welcomed the decision to close the TikTok account, which followed pressure from the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China.

He said: “We are pleased that Parliament, immediately they were told, understood there was a problem and shut it down.

“It’s important for others to look at that now and we need to start talking to people about not using TikTok.”

A TikTok spokeswoman said: “While it is disappointing that Parliament will no longer be able to connect with the millions of people who use TikTok in the UK, we reiterate the offer to reassure those Members of Parliament who raised concerns and clarify any inaccuracies about our platform.”