UK Prime Minister Starmer Uses Disappearing Messages on His Phone

The UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer's office confirmed on Monday that the prime minister uses automatically deleting messages on his mobile phone. This emerged following the release of messages exchanged between ministers and EU ambassador Lord Mandelson, but only a handful were from the prime minister.

The UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer uses automatically deleting, or self-erasing, messages on his mobile phone, Downing Street's office confirmed on Monday. The information came to light in connection with the release of messages exchanged with ministers and the European Union's ambassador, Lord Mandelson.

The package of released messages contained only a few letters from the prime minister, which prompted questions about why his correspondence is so much sparser than that of others. According to the office's explanation, this is because Starmer has set his device to automatically delete messages.

The use of self-deleting messages in government communications has raised questions among the public and the opposition about transparency and the preservation of official documents. Critics have drawn attention to the fact that such practices may hinder oversight of public sector activities and accountability.

The UK has strict laws on access to public sector information, and the deletion of official communications is a sensitive issue following questions that arose during the COVID-19 inquiry about the deletion of messages by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and other officials.