A week is a very long time in politics or so the saying goes.
With the announcement by US President Joe Biden that he won’t seek re-election and the news that Kamala Harris has secured enough delegates to likely become the Democratic presidential candidate in November, things have changed rapidly.
As we’ve said before this is the kind of big, quick-moving event that can be a hotbed for misinformation, and this week has been no different. We’ve seen a claim that Joe Biden has passed away (he hasn’t) and another claim that Kamala Harris was pictured with Jeffrey Epstein (she wasn’t).
In the run up to the November presidential election we’re likely going to see more and more misinformation, so it pays to take extra care when looking at claims being made online. Especially if the source is ambiguous or the claim seems fantastical.
We’ve seen a post getting attention on Facebook claiming that “For every pound Scotland earns, Westminster taxes Scotland 63%.” It goes on to say that Scotland is “expected to function” on the remaining 37% of the revenue it generates.
In 2022/23 approximately three quarters of public sector revenue generated in Scotland was collected by the UK government. But total public spending for Scotland in the same year was higher than the public sector revenue it generated.
People on social media are saying that about 80% of Britain voted “against Labour” at the 2024 general election.
This isn’t quite right if we take the claim to refer to those who voted for parties other than Labour. The 80% figure relates to those on the electoral roll who did not vote for Labour, either because they voted for other parties, because they didn’t vote at all or spoiled their ballots.
A video of Reform UK leader and Clacton MP Nigel Farage has been shared on social media, claiming Mr Farage “says he will do nothing for the black community”. But this clip is missing important context.
While Mr Farage did say this, the quote circulating online has been taken out of context, as the video stops mid-sentence before Mr Farage completes his comments. He went on to say: “I couldn’t give a damn whether you’re black or white, whether you’re gay or straight. I really don’t care. You’ll be judged by your character.”
