TikTok has been accused of "unacceptable political interference" after removing one of Reform UK's migration videos for allegedly violating so-called "hate speech".
In the video, which was also posted on other social media platforms, Reform UK's home affairs spokesman, Zia Yusuf, warned that Britain has been "overwhelmed" by mass migration.
Mr Yusuf directed criticism at the Conservative Party by pointing out Tory leaders had promised to reduce migration levels ahead of successive general elections.
He added that the UK cannot afford to grant permanent residency to millions of asylum seekers who have entered Britain both illegally and legally.
Reform has vowed to abolish immigration status to prevent migrants from gaining lifetime access to Britain’s social welfare schemes.
"Those who do not speak English, those who do not contribute economically, and those who commit a crime will no longer be welcome in our country," Mr Yusuf said.
Mr Yusuf also claimed British culture has been eroded by mass migration.
However, TikTok's censors were alerted to the post under the Online Safety Act.
The legislation, which was introduced by the Tories in 2023, came into law in July 2025.
A Reform migration video has been removed from TikTok for 'hate speech'
|X/ZIA YUSUF
The social media platform claimed Mr Yusuf's video contained "hate speech" or "hateful behaviour".
A message from the site posted by Mr Yusuf said: "TikTok is a place for diverse communities to connect, not to spread hate.
"We don’t allow hate speech, hateful behaviour or promotion of hateful ideologies.
"This includes content that attacks people based on protected attributes like race, religion, gender or sexual orientation.
"Users and third parties can report policy violations to us. We have detected this policy violation based on a report that the content violated our Community Guidelines."
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
TikTok issued a statement claiming the comments were reported to its censors under the Online Safety Act, brought in by the Conservative Party in 2023
|TIKTOK
Mr Yusuf responded by questioning why the media group continues to "happily host hundreds of videos of people calling for the assassination of Nigel Farage".
"Labour is using the Online Safety Act to silence political opponents, and TikTok is doing their dirty work," he added.
"First, TikTok removed my video announcing Reform UK’s new policy to place secure illegal migrant detention centres in non-Reform constituencies, prioritising Green ones.
"TikTok explicitly cited the Online Safety Act as the reason for its removal. This is hard evidence of this draconian legislation being weaponised to silence political opponents. That same video has 6.2 million views on other platforms. Today, the censorship escalated.
"TikTok has now removed my video outlining the key policies I would implement as Home Secretary, claiming it is 'Hate Speech and Hateful Behaviour.'
Mr Yusuf also claimed British culture has been eroded by mass migration
|X/ZIA YUSUF
"They warned me that any further 'violations' will result in a strike, potentially leading to being de-platformed altogether."
He added: "This is all the more staggering given TikTok happily hosts hundreds of videos of people calling for the assassination of Nigel Farage. My TikTok videos had received 18 million views over the previous 28 days.
"This is a chilling attempt to silence one of the biggest and fastest-growing UK political accounts on the platform.
"TikTok is engaging in direct political interference in the midst of the most pivotal elections in our country’s history. All under the auspices of the Online Safety Act that the Tories and Labour claimed to be about protecting children.
"It is, and always will be, about silencing voices the open-borders political establishment don’t like. TikTok have decided to try and suppress Reform."
Reform UK's leader, Mr Farage, also criticised the platform
|X
Reform UK's leader Nigel Farage also criticised the platform.
He said: "This video from Zia Yusuf on immigration has been removed by TikTok for 'Hate Speech'.
"This is unacceptable political interference from a big tech company. Does TikTok believe in free speech or not?"
However, a Department for Science, Innovation and Technology spokesman told GB News: "The decision to remove content is made by the platforms independently.
"The Online Safety Act is designed to keep children safe online – protecting them from harmful content – and not to censor political debate. It doesn't enable platforms to arbitrarily remove content, and tech firms have a duty to uphold freedom of expression."
GB News has approached TikTok for comment.
Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter