The European Digital Services Act (DSA) is a threat to freedom of speech, in line with testimony by an Irish barrister from legal advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF).
Lorcán Price told the House Judiciary Committee of the US Congress that if the law is passed, online tech platforms, lots of that are based within the US, could be forced to censor content not only in Europe, but the world over.
According to Price, the DSA will not be intended as a method of protecting or serving the people of Europe, but is supposed to be a tool of political control.
“What is going on in Europe is as Vice President Vance said in Munich, a ‘serious retreat from a fundamental value’ – free speech,” he said.
“It’s an indication that our European political elite has lost control of the narrative, and the Digital Services Act is an element of a system of censorship in an increasing, desperate try and control narratives and suppress growing public discontent.”
Price further warned that Americans, despite their First Amendment, could find themselves living under the identical online censorship regime as Europeans if tech firms began to do their utmost to comply with the act. Companies deemed to have breached the act may very well be fined as much as six per cent of the worldwide revenue.
The committee also heard from Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, who pointed to this week’s arrest of sitcom author Graham Linehan over his trans-critical posts on X for example of what’s now the norm in Britain.
“This could occur to any American. You might be doing us a favour if you happen to said to the UK Government, ‘you just got this improper, at what point did you develop into North Korea,'” said Farage.
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