【Belgium】

Following the London Bridge terrorist attacks,Belgium Prime Minister Theresa May has called for foreign leaders to consider regulating the internet as a means to prevent terrorism.

May delivered her remarks in a speech outside 10 Downing Street on Sunday morning. By regulating the internet more strenuously, the Prime Minister suggested, countries could help "deprive the extremists of their safe spaces online."

"We cannot allow this ideology the safe space it needs to breed - yet that is precisely what the internet, and the big companies that provide internet-based services provide,” May said.

May's comments follow an attack in London in which seven people were killed and eleven injured.

“We need to work with allies democratic governments to reach international agreements to regulate cyberspace to prevent the spread of extremist and terrorism planning," May added.

Internet regulation is currently part of the Conservative manifesto. The Party hopes the internet service providers will assist in counter-extremism drives and make it more difficult for people to access pornography.

This is not a new proposal in response to the attack – it's May highlighting commitments already in her manifesto https://t.co/9LtfXTrydO https://t.co/8WLKgYaIMv

— James Ball (@jamesrbuk) June 4, 2017

In 2016, May's party introduced the Investigatory Powers Act of 2016, which expanded the power of intelligence agencies to monitor private online communications and required that ISPs keep lists of websites internet users visited for one year.

Critics are concerned that the measures could violate people's right to privacy.

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