UK Parliament Calls For Electoral Law Update to Prevent Possible Online Interference

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd July, 2019) The Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Committee of the UK parliament has urged the government to adopt new legislation on digital electoral procedures, saying the current UK electoral law is not fit for digital campaigning techniques and cannot protect the United Kingdom from "fake news" and other forms of malicious interference in voting processes, the parliament said in a press release on Tuesday.

"We're calling on the Government to bring in urgent legislation before the end of the year to protect our democracy against online electoral interference ... We know that our electoral laws are not fit for purpose. Political campaigns are fought online, not through the letter box and our laws need to be brought up to date with the digital age," the press release said.

In particular, lawmakers suggested introducing a searchable public repository that would contain information on all online political campaign materials, paid and unpaid.

Additionally, the DCMS Committee urged the government to acknowledge the risks of foreign investments in elections, particularly through digital payments, and the role of social media campaigns in influencing public opinion, the statement added.

The United Kingdom is in the midst of a Conservative party leadership race, which will end up with the winner also becoming the next prime minister. The Tories are expected to announce their new leader on July 23 after their 160,000 members vote to chose between the two remaining candidates, former London Mayor Boris Johnson and Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

A number of Western nations, including the United Kingdom, have accused Russia of interfering in their domestic affairs, particularly through cyberattacks and propaganda on social media. Moscow has repeatedly refuted allegations.