The government isn’t going to slow the internet at night from November

Videos shared hundreds of times online claim the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has announced that from 1 November “the government will officially throttle your internet speed after midnight”.

But this isn’t true. The government has not announced any such policy and the videos include audio that was almost certainly made using artificial intelligence (AI) played over an old clip of the PM.

Full Fact found clips shared on Facebook and TikTok with audio that sounds like Mr Starmer claiming a new policy called “digital energy regulation” will mean “every household, every device, every connection, will be slowed down by law”.

A search for “digital energy regulation” on the government’s website only showed results for a company on the government’s Digital Marketplace, which maintains “cost efficient and effective digital energy regulation services”. There is no mention of reducing internet speeds alongside this phrase. (The Digital Marketplace helps public sector organisations find technology or people for digital projects.)

The videos claim a “midnight internet blackout” will take place from 12am until 6am, starting on 1 November, which could see connections “drop to just 10% of normal speed”. The new policy has supposedly been introduced to “save energy and reduce carbon emissions”.

However, we could find no credible reports about such a policy by media organisations, internet companies or industry bodies.

Similarly, searches of Hansard, the record of what is said in Parliament, and gov.uk don’t show any evidence of such an announcement, which you would expect with such a major policy.

While the government has reportedly been considering online safety measures to curb the amount of time children spend on social media apps, including a possible digital curfew of 10pm, this has not been established in law and there’s no indication this would slow down internet speeds for adults.

There have been reports of government internet shutdowns in other countries, but there is absolutely no evidence the UK government intends to introduce any such policy from November.

While it may be obvious to some that the claims in this video aren’t true, it may be less clear to others. The number of shares and the nature of the comments below these videos indicate to us that many people took it at face value.

Who is speaking in the video?

There are clear signs that the audio clips are not genuine. Their cadence is extremely even and the intonation sounds unnatural, which suggests they may be AI-generated, although we can’t rule out that it has been faked another way, for example by using an impersonator. You can read more about how to spot AI audio, and the challenges of doing this, in our guide.

The videos also feature old footage of Mr Starmer. One Facebook video begins with a clip taken from a video of Mr Starmer marking his first anniversary as prime minister. In this video he makes no reference to reducing internet speeds.

It’s also unlikely that the prime minister would critique his own policy while announcing it—the voiceover features phrases that do this, such as: “Energy experts say this won’t save power, it will only restrict freedom”.

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen videos sharing misinformation about supposed new policies or rules that don’t exist, for example claims that all drivers now have to pay £100 to enter London and the government is introducing a £500 ‘exit fee’ to leave the UK.

It’s important to consider whether information you see on social media comes from a trustworthy and verifiable source before sharing it. Our toolkit provides some advice about how to do this.