Baroness Kidron, a crossbench peer and leading online safety campaigner, has accused Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer of “appeasing” big tech firms and being “late to the party” on regulating social media and artificial intelligence.

In an interview with BBC Radio 4’s Political Thinking, she argued that Starmer should act quickly rather than launching more consultations and criticised him for citing his own experience as a parent, saying it did not make him an expert and that his family was “sheltered” compared to others.

Baroness Kidron, a former award-winning film director, has been a prominent voice in Parliament on online safety. She said successive governments had delayed measures that could have prevented AI chatbots from being used to create sexualised images. Quoting Winston Churchill, she remarked:

"The appeaser thinks that they feed the crocodile in the hope they'll be eaten last."

She further accused the PM of “rubbing up against the tech bros” and suggested that children’s safety was being compromised to please Silicon Valley.

The government rejected these claims, noting that it has introduced “some of the strongest online safety protections in the world” and emphasised ongoing actions:

• Launching a consultation to ban under-16s from social media
• Cracking down on addictive app features
• Legislating against “nudification” tools
• Bringing additional AI chatbots under the Online Safety Act

Sir Keir stated in an article that he is committed to tackling the addictive elements of social media and is prepared to confront tech companies if necessary.

Baroness Kidron urged the government to adopt proposals already discussed in the House of Lords, suggesting many could be enacted “as soon as next week.”