TikTok good for reaching younger people, Coventry MP Zarah Sultana says

Zarah Sultana told BBC Politics Midlands it was a good way of getting out political messages to younger people

An MP who has more than 400,000 TikTok followers said she would continue using the platform to reach younger people.

Zarah Sultana, 29, Labour MP for Coventry South, said she would use the platform on personal devices, which was allowed under new rules.

Ms Sultana, one of the most followed MPs on TikTok, said it was a "very effective" way of reaching people.

British government ministers have been banned from using the Chinese-owned social media app on security grounds.

The MP has over 400,000 followers on TikTok

Ms Sultana told BBC Politics Midlands cabinet minister Grant Shapps had said he would also continue using the platform.

Mr Shapps, a keen TikTokker, has said he had never used the platform on a government device.

"I've seen the advice for official phones and laptops to not have TikTok on them but Grant Shapps himself has said that he will continue to use TikTok on his personal device," Ms Sultana said.

"As a backbencher, it's also on my personal device so I'll continue to use the platform because I think it's really effective in reaching out to newer audiences, younger audiences and getting out political messages."

The government banned its use on work devices over fears sensitive data held on official phones could be accessed by the Chinese government.

However, the Chinese embassy in London said the move was motivated by politics "rather than facts" and would "undermine the confidence of the international community in the UK's business environment".