PM vows to make UK 'safest place to be online'

As the NHS recovers from a massive cyber attack, Prime Minister Theresa May is announcing plans to make Britain "the safest place in the world for people to be online."

Reforms to be introduced if Conservatives win the June 8 general election include a new "right to innocence" protection enabling teenagers to wipe their social media history to prevent youthful indiscretions coming back to haunt them.

Meanwhile, Labour is promising to enshrine in law the triple lock protection which guarantees state pensions will rise by average earnings, inflation or 2.5%, whichever is the larger.

And Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron is pledging to build 300,000 homes a year to tackle the housing crisis.

Mrs May broke off from election campaigning on Friday to reassure patients that no evidence had been found of their data being compromised by the "malware" attack which froze computers across the NHS.

She put internet safety at the top of her agenda for Saturday's campaigning, promising to "make Britain the best place in the world to start and run a digital business, and the safest place in the world for people to be online".

Among measures promised by the Tories are penalties for web giants which fail to stop children accessing harmful content.

And a "comply or explain" system will require internet companies to take down content that has been the subject of complaints, or provide an explanation for their decision not to act.

Mrs May said the internet had brought "a wealth of opportunity, but also significant new risks which have evolved faster than society's response to them".

She said: "We want social media companies to do more to help redress the balance and will take action to make sure they do."

Jeremy Corbyn has already promised to preserve the pensions triple lock introduced by David Cameron, amid speculation that Mrs May could be preparing to ditch it from the Tory manifesto.

Since its introduction in 2010, the measure has resulted in pensioner incomes rising faster than average earnings, sparking warnings from the independent Institute for Fiscal Studies that it will swallow up an ever greater share of state spending.

A cross-party House of Commons select committee report earlier this year described it as "inherently unsustainable" and recommended it should not be continued beyond 2020.

By legislating to preserve it, Mr Corbyn would make it more difficult for future governments to scale back pensioner support.

Labour is also promising to protect the winter fuel payment and free bus passes. Liberal Democrats have said they will scrap the fuel allowance of up to £300 a year for wealthier pensioners.

Meeting pensioners in Norwich on Saturday, Mr Corbyn is expected to say that a Labour government is "necessary to provide a secure and dignified retirement for the many who have contributed all their lives".

But a Tory spokesman said that Labour would be unable to deliver the commitment, because Mr Corbyn's economic plan was "a shambles".

Under new Lib Dem plans to boost the provision of homes, councils could ramp up taxes on empty properties and developers could be fined for stockpiling land.

The party also committed to building 500,000 affordable, energy-efficient homes over five years.

Outlining the plans for the government itself to act as a housebuilder, Mr Farron said: "The only way to get a grip on the housing crisis is by firm government action.

"The market is broken and has failed to deliver."