<p>Britain on Tuesday said Twitter "must be responsible" following its purchase by Elon Musk, amid concerns it could overly relax content moderation policies under the controversial billionaire entrepreneur.</p>.<p>Musk, the world's richest man, struck a deal Monday to buy Twitter for £35 billion ($44 billion, 41 billion euros) and has vowed to take a robust free speech stance on the social media platform.</p>.<p>That has stoked fears it will become a host of hate and propaganda and leave the onus on users to combat bullying and misinformation.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/technology/musk-owned-twitter-will-have-to-respect-eu-laws-says-commissioner-1104088.html">Musk-owned Twitter will have to respect EU laws, says Commissioner</a></strong></p>.<p>"Regardless of ownership, all social media platforms must be responsible and that includes protecting their users from harm on their sites," British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman told reporters.</p>.<p>"Obviously, it is too early to say what, if any changes, will be made to how Twitter operates," he added, noting the site remains an important tool used by world leaders.</p>.<p>"We will continue to work with them to make sure it continues to improve."</p>.<p>The UK government last month introduced draft legislation to improve online safety, which includes new measures to protect users, in particular children, from harmful content such as pornography and cyber-bullying.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/twitter-has-long-been-more-talk-than-money-1103995.html" target="_blank">Twitter has long been more talk than money</a></strong></p>.<p>Failure to comply could see online firms face fines of up to 10 per cent of their annual global turnover if the bill is passed by parliament.</p>.<p>Tech bosses who fail to cooperate and comply would also run the risk of criminal prosecution and jail terms of up to two years, the government has said.</p>.<p>"All companies in (the) scope of the bill will have to balance protecting their users and the importance of upholding free speech," Johnson's spokesman said Tuesday.</p>.<p>But he added: "We are certainly unified on the fact that we want to strengthen and defend freedom of expression."</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/business-news/musks-free-speech-push-for-twitter-repeating-history-1104050.html" target="_blank">Musk's 'free speech' push for Twitter: Repeating history?</a></strong></p>.<p>His comments come as the European Union warned Musk that Twitter under his ownership will have to "totally adapt" to the 27-member bloc's own new laws curbing the power of big tech expected to come into force in the coming months.</p>.<p>Lawmakers there are finalising the Digital Services Act, which will set limits on content, and the Digital Markets Act, which will limit the ways tech giants do business.</p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH Videos here:</strong></p>
<p>Britain on Tuesday said Twitter "must be responsible" following its purchase by Elon Musk, amid concerns it could overly relax content moderation policies under the controversial billionaire entrepreneur.</p>.<p>Musk, the world's richest man, struck a deal Monday to buy Twitter for £35 billion ($44 billion, 41 billion euros) and has vowed to take a robust free speech stance on the social media platform.</p>.<p>That has stoked fears it will become a host of hate and propaganda and leave the onus on users to combat bullying and misinformation.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/technology/musk-owned-twitter-will-have-to-respect-eu-laws-says-commissioner-1104088.html">Musk-owned Twitter will have to respect EU laws, says Commissioner</a></strong></p>.<p>"Regardless of ownership, all social media platforms must be responsible and that includes protecting their users from harm on their sites," British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman told reporters.</p>.<p>"Obviously, it is too early to say what, if any changes, will be made to how Twitter operates," he added, noting the site remains an important tool used by world leaders.</p>.<p>"We will continue to work with them to make sure it continues to improve."</p>.<p>The UK government last month introduced draft legislation to improve online safety, which includes new measures to protect users, in particular children, from harmful content such as pornography and cyber-bullying.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/twitter-has-long-been-more-talk-than-money-1103995.html" target="_blank">Twitter has long been more talk than money</a></strong></p>.<p>Failure to comply could see online firms face fines of up to 10 per cent of their annual global turnover if the bill is passed by parliament.</p>.<p>Tech bosses who fail to cooperate and comply would also run the risk of criminal prosecution and jail terms of up to two years, the government has said.</p>.<p>"All companies in (the) scope of the bill will have to balance protecting their users and the importance of upholding free speech," Johnson's spokesman said Tuesday.</p>.<p>But he added: "We are certainly unified on the fact that we want to strengthen and defend freedom of expression."</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/business-news/musks-free-speech-push-for-twitter-repeating-history-1104050.html" target="_blank">Musk's 'free speech' push for Twitter: Repeating history?</a></strong></p>.<p>His comments come as the European Union warned Musk that Twitter under his ownership will have to "totally adapt" to the 27-member bloc's own new laws curbing the power of big tech expected to come into force in the coming months.</p>.<p>Lawmakers there are finalising the Digital Services Act, which will set limits on content, and the Digital Markets Act, which will limit the ways tech giants do business.</p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH Videos here:</strong></p>