A glimpse of No10 security, Hancock’s pancake flipping, and Grant Shapps’ bloopers: The MPs who have turned their hand to TikTok… but will they stop now the government has banned the app from official devices?
- Minister Oliver Dowden said app would be banned from government devices
- But stopped short of banning the app from politicians’ personal phones
They’ve offered their loyal followers a glimpse inside Downing Street security, given tips on flipping pancakes and shared their broadcast bloopers with their thousands of followers.
But MPs who have joined millions of other Brits on TikTok now face a decision whether to stay on the platform.
Cabinet Office minister Oliver Dowden on Thursday announced the app would be banned from government devices, citing fears over the protection of sensitive data.
But he stopped short of forcing ministers and civil servants to bin the app from their own personal devices.
It means politicians who keep using the Chinese-owned video platform on their own mobiles will not be breaking any rules by doing so, but face calls to quit anyway.
TikTok has long said it does not share data with China but the country’s intelligence legislation requires firms to help the Communist Party when requested.
Critics fear the policy could expose data to Beijing, with growing concerns about how Xi Jinping’s administration could use technology against the West.
And the new rules have already caused a split. Some aficionados have pledged to continue to perform for their fans, while others have already voluntarily deleted in, just to be on the safe side.
Parliamentary users of the app appear to be split between middle-aged male MPs and young female MPs.
Cabinet Office minister Oliver Dowden on Thursday announced the app would be banned from government devices, citing fears over the protection of sensitive data.
Grant Shapps
The Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary boasts more than 14,000 followers on the app, where he mostly posts behind-the-scenes of his day-to-day work and snippets of meetings with significant figures.
He has recently used it to share BTS (behind the scenes) footage from an official video interview, complete with all the outtakes.
And last night he used a post on the Chinese-owned platform – popular with teenagers – featuring Leonardo Di Caprio to say he would not be leaving.
Mr Shapps posted a video on the site showing Di Caprio as convicted fraudster Jordan Belfort in Martin Scorsese’s 2013 film, in a scene where he refuses to quit his financial firm, telling cheering staff: ‘They’re gonna need a f**king wrecking ball to take us out of here!’
The minister wrote: ‘I’ve never used TikTok on goverment (sic) devices and can hereby confirm I will NOT be leaving TikTok anytime soon!’
A spokeswoman said: ‘Grant has never used TikTok on Government devices and believes security measures, like not sharing location permission, are sensible.
‘However, he is concerned that representatives of the people who deliberately choose not to engage with the public on the platforms that they actually use are unlikely to continue to represent these voters for long.’
Mr Shapps recently posted from his constituency’s career fair in Welwyn Hatfield, Hertfordshire, as well as a discussion with his US counterpart, Jennifer Granholm.
Mr Shapps has recently used it to share BTS (behind the scenes) footage from an official video interview, complete with all the outtakes. And last night he used a post on the Chinese-owned platform – popular with teenagers – featuring Leonardo Di Caprio to say he would not be leaving.
One of his more popular videos, which had more than 67,000 views, shows him and a crowd of MPs waiting for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to address Parliament in February.
‘So we are all crowded into Westminster Hall and this is the hall of the Commons and the Lords and we are just waiting – there are a lot of familiar faces here, hi Ed,’ Mr Shapps says to the camera.
Luke Evans
Dr Evans made headlines in February when he posted a video showing Downing Street’s security layout on TikTok.
The Bosworth MP has 42,700 followers on the platform and uploaded footage of himself going through the gates and up to the famous black door – although he did not include images from inside a search point.
Like Mr Shapps he appears disinclined to quit TikTok. Last night he posted a scene from Top Gun Maverick, adding: ‘Today the UK Government banned the use of TikTok on Government-issued phones. Something I agree with – I don’t have a Government-issued phone.’
This morning he shared a view from inside the Houses of Parliament – in an area open to the public.
Dr Evans made headlines in February when he posted a video showing Downing Street’s security layout on TikTok. This morning he shared a view from inside the Houses of Parliament – in an area open to the public.
Matt Hancock
Mr Hancock has more than 180,000 followers on TikTok and received more than over 1.6 million likes, proving him more successful than his colleagues at acquiring an audience on the app, which is known for its younger demographic.
The former health secretary, 44 announced the closure of the Matt Hancock MP app in January after five years, but still posts regularly on TikTok.
He has used the platform to promote his book, Pandemic Diaries, answer questions from members of the public, post videos of him skiing and trying to flip pancakes on Shrove Tuesday in a Union flag apron.
One of his most popular videos, which received 2.9 million views, features him talking about press coverage on a trip to Turkey, where many jokingly speculated the MP for West Suffolk was getting a hair transplant and veneers fitted – two sought-after cosmetic procedures in the country.
‘So I just got back to the office to find that a journalist has called to ask if I went to Istanbul at the weekend to have hair transplants and veneers,’ Mr Hancock says to the camera.
‘No. I did go to Istanbul at the weekend, but this story has no teeth – it’s hair today, gone tomorrow.’
Mr Hancock then laughs to himself before stopping the video, which received more than 200,000 likes.
Jeremy Corbyn
The former Labour leader and MP for Islington North mostly posts clips of speeches he has made, at events, protests or in the Commons.
As an MP only, Mr Corbyn’s use of TikTok is not likely to be affected by the ban, but he does have more than 62,000 followers and more than 400,000 likes on the app.
Mr Corbyn, 74, posted a video last night in which he said: ‘Union membership is in. Union membership is cool.’
Last November he was branded one of Vladimir Putin’s ‘useful idiots’ by Ukraine’s government over his appearances at events demanding peace at any cost – even if it means handing over large parts of Ukraine to the Russian invaders.
Recent videos include him speaking at a National Education Union picket line in support of union membership, and demanding a stop to ‘outsourcing’ of the NHS in a speech from Westminster.
After coming in for criticism in the past year over his soft position on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he used a video in March last year to say ‘some of us have never supported Putin and and never supported the oligarchs surrounding him’.
But last November he was branded one of Vladimir Putin’s ‘useful idiots’ by Ukraine’s government over his appearances at events demanding peace at any cost – even if it means handing over large parts of Ukraine to the Russian invaders.
Last month shadow defence secretary John Healey distanced the party from its former leader after he said he would not send UK military aid to Kyiv if he was still in charge in case it was used to invade Russia.
Speaking to Global’s The News Agents podcast, Mr Corbyn reiterated his support for a ceasefire – a move critics say would allow Russia to cement its presence in occupied Ukrainian territory and resist a counter attack.
He added: ‘I would not be sending materiel which would allow the invasion of Russia.’
Asked about the comments on Times Radio, Mr Healey said: ‘Jeremy Corbyn is no longer a Labour MP, and this just confirms that Jeremy Corbyn is on the outer margins of British public opinion.
Zarah Sultana
The most popular MP on the app is Labour’s Zarah Sultana, 29, MP for Coventry South.
She has more than 440,000 followers and 7.3 million likes and has posted more than 270 videos on the site at time of writing.
Ms Sultana mostly posts interviews from her time on BBC Two’s Politics Live, and footage of her speaking in the Commons on issues such as poverty, strikes and her Free School Meals for All Bill.
She recently posted a more personal TikTok from her travels to Kashmir, where she attended a family wedding in February.
And she has posted since the government ban came into effect, sharing a video of her speech at a strike rally yesterday.
Dehenna Davison
One of the youngest and newest MPs in Westminster, it is less of a surprise that Dehenna Davison is on TikTok.
The 29-year-old is a Levelling Up Minister despite having only been elected in 2019 – and having already decided to only serve one term.
Davison, who was elected as Bishop Auckland MP three-and-a-half years ago, revealed last November her plans to quit Parliament in order to ‘devote more of my attention to life outside politics’.
She was the latest in a number of Conservative MPs to recently announce they won’t contest the next general election, a group than now numbers more than 20.
The 29-year-old is a Levelling Up Minister despite having only been elected in 2019 – and having already decided to only serve one term.
Ms Davison is friends with Carrie Johnson, the wife of former prime minister Boris Johnson, and a presenter on TV channel GB News.
She is also a prominent member of the group of ‘Red Wall’ Tory MPs who won seats at the 2019 general election that had historically been among Labour’s heartlands.
Ms Davison – who appeared with her ex-husband on Channel 4 documentary series Bride and Prejudice before entering Parliament, said: ‘For my whole adult life, I’ve dedicated the vast majority of my time to politics, and to help make people’s lives better,’ she wrote.
‘But, to be frank, it has meant I haven’t had anything like a normal life for a twenty-something.’
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