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As it happenedended

Westminster today: Theresa May gives speech on online abuse as MPs commemorate 100 years of women having the vote - as it happened

Prime Minister speaks amid fury over Conservative MP's claims that hard Brexiteers should be kicked out Tory party

Benjamin Kentish
Political Correspondent
Tuesday 06 February 2018 10:15 GMT
Comments
Anna Soubry calls on Theresa May to take back control from hard brexiteers who are 'not real Conservatives'

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Theresa May called on social media companies to "step up" the fight against online abuse, as she delivered a speech in Manchester to mark the centenary of women being given the vote.

The Prime Minister warned of a "coarsening" public debate that she said poses "a threat to our democracy".

She said the Government will carry out a review of print journalism to assess what can be done to support ailing newspapers.

There were also calls for ministers to pardon suffragettes who were convicted of crimes while fighting for women to be given the vote. As Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, said she was "looking at" the issue, Jeremy Corbyn said a Labour government would implement the pardon.

It came as the row within the Conservative Party deepened after a pro-EU backbencher suggested Theresa May should expel hard Brexiteers from the party.

Anna Soubry said around 35 Eurosceptics should be "slung out", adding "it is about time Theresa stood up to them".

As it happened...

Katie Price is currently giving evidence to a parliamentary committee about online abuse of her son, Harvey.

She says she reported the abuse and police investigated and arrested three people but said they could not charge the culprits under any current legal offences.

Kristin Hugo6 February 2018 14:40

Ms Price praises the police for their efforts in relation to abuse against her son, saying they were apologetic over the fact there were no charges they could bring against those responsible.

She says there needs to be a formal record of people found to have harassed people online so that employers are aware of who they are giving jobs to.

Schools do a lot to clamp down on bullying in classrooms, she says, but there needs to be much more done to stop online abuse.

Kristin Hugo6 February 2018 14:51

Tory divisions over Brexit are set to reach crunch point tomorrow when the Cabinet's Brexit sub-committee meets to thrash out a plan for Britain's future relationship with the EU. Eurosceptics are already getting geared up for a battle...

Kristin Hugo6 February 2018 15:33

A cross-party group of MPs has called on Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, to make misogyny a specific hate crime.

Crimes in which a victim has been targeted as a result of their race, sexuality or disability are already be classified as aggravated offences but gender is not currently included. Lizzy Buchan's report here...

Kristin Hugo6 February 2018 15:59
Kristin Hugo6 February 2018 16:33

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