The UK government has instructed social media companies to remove content showing drivers going the wrong way down roads, following a fatal crash over the weekend. Two police officers were among seven people killed when a car traveling in the wrong direction collided with a police vehicle on the A66 near Middlesbrough.
There have been reports that at least one of the young men who died in the early Saturday collision had been involved in filming dangerous driving for TikTok videos. Defence Minister Luke Pollard said platforms must remove content glorifying dangerous driving or face enforcement under the Online Safety Act. Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Pollard stated: "We've communicated to those social media platforms that have been hosting content that celebrates this type of dangerous behaviour on our roads to take down that content."
Pollard emphasized the need for social media companies to act responsibly: "I want to see social media companies step up. It's one of the reasons they've argued against some of the regulations, saying they can police themselves. Well this is the perfect opportunity to demonstrate it. Remove the content that celebrates dangerous behaviour on our roads."
The issue gained prominence after a public outcry in Ireland, where five teenagers were killed in a head-on crash on the M9 in County Kildare on 16 August 2026. Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly described the collision as "horrific" and noted that some vehicles were driven on the wrong side for social media likes. TikTok declined an invitation to appear before an Irish parliamentary committee, citing the ongoing police investigation.
This incident has prompted the UK government to take action against dangerous driving content online, aiming to make the internet safer and prevent such tragedies.