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Dame Sara Khan DBE

@sarakhandbe.bsky.social
380 followers 203 following 187 posts

UK Counter-Extremism Commissioner 2018-2021 UK Gov Adviser on Social Cohesion & Resilience 2021-2024 The Khan Review (2024) Global Board Member: More In Common Senior Adviser: Crest Advisory Trustee: Demos

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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Dan Snow @thehistoryguy.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
England is a made up thing. It has no basis in the ineluctable laws of nature. Its extent is defined by Edward II getting his arse handed to him. Athelstan conquering York. The Welsh of Cumbria were incorporated, the Welsh of Gwynedd were not. It is a political idea, an aspiration - not taxonomy.
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Connor spouts racist anti democractic extreme right wing views about remigration. Don't be fooled just because he wears a suit & talks politely. He is the mirror version of Islamist extremists who deny equal citizenship to non-Muslims & other Muslim minorities. Implementing the 3 Ds would be violent
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Braverman should be asked if she rejects Ed Miliband being English (Jewish European parents). It would be highly racialised to say "no, Jews can't be Englieh for 5-6 generations" which is her logic. But perhaos even more racist to say "Miliband yes, Sunak no" (on visible skin colour, not ancestry)
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
THREAD: Sunak is right about fighting ethnonationalist ideas. But truth is we're not doing enough to combat those poisonous ideas. Significant minority nearly 1 in 3 now believe in ethnonationalism; 1 in 3 in remigration. Read 'Britain Under Strain' July 2026 www.ukedrc.org.uk/publications
ukedrc.org.uk
Publications — UKEDRC
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
I don't know what it's going to take for UK Gov to address the threat of extremism in Britain. I want to make it clear: Neither the Home Office, MHCLG or indeed Whitehall have a proper analysis of the scale and impact of the problem, nor a proper strategic plan. Our national cohesion is threatened.
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Jonathan Freedland @jonathanfreedland.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Why the Israeli opposition fears next month’s election could be the last. Latest column www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
This Israeli election could be the country’s last – this week I saw that for myself | Jonathan Freedland
Spend time on the ground and you see how high the stakes are for next month’s contest – for Israelis and Palestinians alike, says Guardian columnist Jonathan Freedland
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
Was featured in Telegraph's Saturday interview. Topics of discussion incl findings from Britain Under Strain, the report I co-authored, free speech, grooming gangs, integration, RS Batley teacher (whose case I officially reviewed, Muslims, Far right & Islamist extremism share.google/JBpQ82zRQeRw...
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Lizzie Dearden @lizziedearden.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
12 people have been arrested as part of an investigation into a suspected extreme right-wing terror plot against an Islamic gathering in Suffolk The UK Ijtima, which hosted 15,000 Muslims for a programme of talks and discussions, was closed and evacuated by police on Sunday
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Singular focus on deporting Shabbir Ahmed - ringleader monster of the Rochdale grooming gangs without anyone asking risk he poses to young girls in Pakistan is disturbing. He should never have been released from prison & his sentences should not have run concurrently. Institutional failure. Again.
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
The Times covered a report I co-authored, launched yesterday. Britain Under Strain shows how 2 in 3 people believe the social contract is broken and evidences how this is fuelling distrust, extremist narratives & conspiracies - this is being exploited by hostile states & domestic extremists.
thetimes.com
Most Britons believe social contract is broken, study finds
New polling reveals deep distrust in politics, rising support for radical upheaval and growing openness to hostile states exploiting UK divisions
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
Really good to see this.
gov.uk
Attorney General launches free Rule of Law lesson plans for every school in England and Wales
Free, classroom-ready lesson plans on the rule of law are now available to every school in England and Wales, following a new partnership between the Attorney General's Office, Oak National Academy an...
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Race riots & a pogrom in Belfast yet no Cobra, no visit by the PM. Political exploitation by arguing immigration while ignoring extreme right wing activity. Last week we heard about 'anti-white racism' & 2-tier policing. Yet ethnic minority homes & shops set on fire. observer.co.uk/news/nationa...
observer.co.uk
‘Violence in these communities is seen as entertainment’:...
Burnt cars, torched houses and masked mobs bring back painful memories. Yet still the likes of Elon Musk and Tommy Robinson fan the flames
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
Why did organisers of Wireless Festival invite Kanye? Ignorance? Lack of due diligence hardly seems credible when so much media coverage of his views. Support for his views? Don't want to believe it but possible. Attempt to separate man from the music? V naive if true.Either way they need to explain
news.sky.com
Pepsi and Diageo withdraw sponsorship of Wireless Festival after Kanye West booking
West, who has previously been criticised over his antisemitic remarks, will top the bill for all three nights of the festival.
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
Democratic freedoms declined every year since 2000, dissatisfaction with democracy grows as does democratic backsliding/erosion. Low levels of political trust drive voters to elect authoritarian leaders. Democracy has been failed by weak/incompetent/dishonest politicial leaders. What should be done?
observer.co.uk
The autocrats are taking over the world | The Observer
Three out of four people now live under some kind of authoritarian rule, and the trend is growing. So how did we lose our love of liberties?
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Lewis Goodall @lewisgoodall.com · 28/03/2026
I’ve long covered MAGA politics but I was shocked by what I heard at CPAC. It has radicalised yet further. It’s a movement convinced it must not only save the US but Western civilisation. Because in their mind, the UK and Europe has already “fallen” to Islam. Watch 👇 youtu.be/t3Y_ozT_p3g?...
youtu.be
Why MAGA hates Britain | The News Agents
YouTube video by The News Agents
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Lizzie Dearden @lizziedearden.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
Greater Manchester Police has found "no evidence of any intent to influence or refrain any person from voting" in the Gorton and Denton by-election, after Reform made a complaint over alleged "family voting" The investigation looked at potential offences under the Representation of the People Act
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Nick Langley @nicklangley.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
The things Goodwin got wrong weren’t obscure academic citations or quibbles over statistics. They were objective falsehoods. ...reports that don't exist ..a string of invented quotations ...a claim that Boris Johnson was in Opposition in 2019... www.thenerve.news/p/matt-goodw...
thenerve.news
Fake quotes, factual errors and ChatGTP links – my bizarre journey into Matt Goodwin’s new book
The Reform UK candidate’s new polemic Suicide of a Nation claims to expose a toxic elite leading Britain to annihilation, but my close reading revealed a mix of phantom sources and falsehoods. Then Ma...
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
The New York Times @nytimes.com · 07/03/2026
Read the full analysis.
nytimes.com
Analysis Suggests School Was Hit Amid U.S. Strikes on Iranian Naval Base
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 03/03/2026
A war of choice, not of necessity - and not consistent with international law - that will unleash chaos, instability and insecurity in our world for I suspect many years to come.
thetimes.com
Prepare for chaos unleashed by Ayatollah Khamenei’s fall
Death of the Iranian dictator is undeniably positive but Trump’s great gamble pushes the world into an uncertain future
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
The current scale of attacks on mosques & Muslim institutions in the UK is unprecedented. This is not just an attack on Muslims, it is an attack on freedom of religion & our democratic values www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Man arrested after 'axe carried into mosque' in Manchester
Manchester Central Mosque said the
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
The Guardian/UCL have conducted an in-depth study of all of the immigration debates in parliament over a century. It shows sentiment more mixed, more negative today than in the past. (Though also that parliamentary sentiment historically is more pro than con) www.theguardian.com/politics/ng-...
theguardian.com
How rightwing rhetoric has risen sharply in the UK parliament – an exclusive visual analysis
In the past five years, MPs’ attitudes in the House of Commons towards immigration have swung harder to the right than at almost any other time in the last century
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Zack Beauchamp @zackbeauchamp.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
I have spent the past several months studying the cutting-edge research on modern democracies that have defeated authoritarian leaders. I've learned that the conventional wisdom on the topic is wrong — in ways that have clear implications for the US going forward THREAD www.vox.com/politics/479...
vox.com
How to stop a dictator
I spent months studying how authoritarians like Trump lose. The answer is shockingly simple.
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
When politicians & folk like Tommy Robinson talk about how UK is a 'Christian country' they often do so in opposition & hatred to a group eg Muslims/Islam. It's from a place of othering & weaponisation in contrast to actual Christian leadership who talk about an inclusive & loving Christianity.
youtube.com
'A Christian nation is an inclusive nation'
YouTube video by LBC
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
Cartoon by Mike Luckovich.
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
Sadly the Red-Green alliance has been alive and well for decades in the UK. I wrote about this in my book 10 years ago. 5 Pillars is an Islamist website who engage in antisemitism, attack Muslims countering extremism while hypocritically platforming neo-Nazis and anti-Muslim extremists. Peverse.
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
Jenrick claims the Public Sector Equality Duty is used by GCHQ to discriminate against white working class boys. I could be wrong but there is no legal evidence that PSED has been used against white working class boys or to block employment at GCHQ. Can Jenrick share his evidence for such a claim?
news.sky.com
Robert Jenrick: Equality must be the 'guiding principle'
Sky's Alexandra Rogers asks Reform UK's Treasury spokesperson Robert Jenrick if he could guarantee no one would lose their job because of their sex, ethnicity or disability under the party's plans to ...
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 13/01/2026
'In 1968 Enoch Powell was sacked from shadow cabinet...today he would be touring podcast studios in UK & America raising money for a new party.' Depressingly true. In a diverse society there have to be non-negotiable democratic norms citizens abide by & the state MUST defend & protect.
app.thenewworld.co.uk
The case for a new Britishness
The social contract must be revitalised or populists will replace it with something much worse. That means citizenship should involve allegiance to a shared way of life
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Ayesha Hazarika @ayeshahazarika.bsky.social · 11/01/2026
Disappointed w BBC for that Mandelson interview. A slap in the face to Epstein victims. He was part of the system of male power which enabled & dismissed abuse. The media went after Mandelson correctly in my view. Now the media is aiding his swift rehabilitation & PR. 1/2
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
What a wonderful and caring human being Jonny Yaxley is.
theguardian.com
Experience: I’m Britain’s best gravedigger
People say my job must make me morbid, but I think the opposite is true, I truly appreciate life
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
Monthly Twitter UK users since Musk 2022 May22: 26.8m May23: 24.3m (-2.5m) May24: 22.1m (-2.2m) May25: 18.9m (-3.2m) Loss of 8 million (30%) in 3 years Daily users on Twiiter after Musk 2022:10.3 m 23: 9.5 (-0.8m) 24: 8.6 (-0.9m) 25: 6.9 (-1.7m) Loss 3.4 million in 3 years (33%) Ipsos/ Ofcom
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 06/01/2026
Interesting how socio-economic issues are simply not a high concern for Reform voters.
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Kenan Malik @kenanmalik.bsky.social · 04/01/2026
“Many who argue for revocation claim that it is necessary to preserve the integrity of citizenship. In fact... to allow the state to annul citizenship so easily is to take its meaning insufficiently seriously.“ My @theobserveruk.bsky.social column: observer.co.uk/news/columni...
observer.co.uk
Stripping citizenship with such ease tears at the moral f...
The clamour to revoke Abd el-Fattah's British identity over past repugnant tweets poses profound questions about state power and individual rights
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 04/01/2026
For years I've called for the proscription of Patriotic Alternative not under existing terrorisn proscription orders but with a new set of hateful extremism proscription orders. For years successive UK governments have instead allowed such dangerous groups to continue operating with impunity.
theguardian.com
Leading UK far-right activist spoke at Russian extreme nationalist event
Exclusive: Patriotic Alternative’s Mark Collett addressed forum along with ideologue described as ‘Putin’s brain’
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 31/12/2025
If Ofcom as regulator is allegedly reluctant to intervene over politically difficult issues of impartiality, then frankly who will? Ofcom as an independent body is there to provide checks & balances. Our institutions must reaffirm their commitment to this especially during these polarised times.
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 31/12/2025
There are legal limitations/principles about freedom of expression. But that doesn't mean those shouting the loudest about these cases have a principled or consistent approach about free speech.That's the real issue.Ideologues using free speech as a culture war & weaponising it for political reasons
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 31/12/2025
It is right el-Fattah apologised for those extreme tweets but to negate all his other pro-democracy activity is peverse. The UK populist right demanding he should lose his British citizenship is ironically peak cancel culture & extreme, the very thing they always complain about.
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 26/12/2025
Very pleased to hear this. The attempt to censure those who counter hate, extremism & disinformation is dangerous & threatens us, our children, our freedoms & democracy. Following the US' Nat Sec Strategy,it's clear European countries are on a collision course with the US. This is a battle of values
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Steve Peers @stevepeers.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
EU Commission response to US sanctions imposed upon advocates of regulating social media ec.europa.eu/commission/p...
Statement of the EU Commission. Full text in the link
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Center for Countering Digital Hate @counterhate.com · 23/12/2025
Now, during the time for giving, would you consider giving to CCDH? Your gift would fuel the research campaigns and advocacy to hold tech bosses accountable for the harms they cause online. Together, we can build a safer internet for all. Donate today ⤵️
donate.counterhate.com
Donate to the Center for Countering Digital Hate
Counter Hate + Disinformation - CCDH works to counter the bad actors and platforms that spread hate and lies. Be part of it.
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
James Ball @jamesrball.com · 23/12/2025
This is a serious escalation of the supposed war against “censorship”: in the name of free speech, five people are now having their visas revoked and are facing deportation. This is a narrative Bari Weiss’s Free Press was heavily involved in pushing, too.
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The National @scotnational.bsky.social · 23/12/2025
A summons against Reginald D Hunter by the Campaign Against Antisemitism has been quashed after a judge ruled the 'abusive' private prosecution was intended to get the comedian 'cancelled'
thenational.scot
Comedian's 'antisemitism' case thrown out as prosecution labelled 'abusive'
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Jonathan Freedland @jonathanfreedland.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
In the gloom, there are points of light - and what connects them is courage. Last column of 2025 offers some reasons to be hopeful www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
At the dark end of a brutal year, I’m grateful to these heroes for showing us the light | Jonathan Freedland
From Palestinians standing up to Hamas to the Bondi beach rescuers, great acts of courage offer hope even in the bleakest times, says Guardian columnist Jonathan Freedland
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
I too was sickened to read arguments made by academics - of who neither they or their daughters will experience FGM - compare what is an act of torture to "designer vaginas." The clue is in the name: "mutilation." Trying to justify FGM for any reason is beyond peverse & an inverted form of racism.
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Politico @politico.com · 17/12/2025
Trump’s dismantling of climate research center is a ‘destruction of knowledge,’ critics say
dlvr.it
Trump’s dismantling of climate research center is a ‘destruction of knowledge,’ critics say
The White House says it’s targeting the “premier research stronghold for left-wing climate lunacy.”
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
Again these people aren't patriots. They hate our country and are allied to others who hate it too. Nothing will ever be achieved by seeking to appease them
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
Very good piece by Sir David Omand on why social cohesion in the face of extremism is a security imperative. In the face of rising extremism and the threat to democracy, the time for a new strategic approach is well overdue.
economist.com
Rising antisemitism reflects wider social ills, says Britain’s former counter-terrorism co-ordinator
Sir David Omand on why social cohesion in the face of extremism is a security imperative
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
The Guardian @theguardian.com · 15/12/2025
Ben Jennings on the Bondi beach terror attack – cartoon
theguardian.com
Ben Jennings on the Bondi beach terror attack – cartoon
Ahmed al-Ahmed has been hailed as a hero after tackling one of the alleged gunmen during Sunday’s attack
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 14/12/2025
Despicable attack on Bondi beach targeting Sydney's Jewish community on 1st day of Hanukkah killing 12, is not only an attack on a religious community it is an attack on democracy & democratic freedoms. Heartbreaking. My thoughts are with victims&families. We must stamp out this antisemitic hatred.
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Dame Sara Khan DBE @sarakhandbe.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
Political violence is an attack on our democracy & yet we are seeing more actions like this occuring. Councillors in Kent were "violently intimidated" and "pelted with eggs" at a meeting by "people wearing balaclavas" in the public gallery. www-bbc-co-uk.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.bbc....
www-bbc-co-uk.cdn.ampproject.org
Balaclava-clad protesters disrupt Kent refugee debate, MP says - BBC News
Kevin McKenna MP says "people in balaclavas violently intimidated" Swale councillors.
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Reposted by Dame Sara Khan DBE
Jim Pickard @pickardje.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Citizens of countries including the UK and France will have to disclose the past five years of their social media history to visit the US even though they are covered by visa waiver schemes, under new proposals by the Trump administration. www.ft.com/content/683b...
ft.com
US to require social media disclosure for visa-waiver requests
Change would affect visitors from countries including the UK, France and Australia
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