The majority of the British public agrees with the decision to take down a Facebook tribute page to Northumbria gunman Raoul Moat, research on behalf of the Sun has found.
As victims’ experiences of Moat’s actions continue to come to light, and in response to pressure from the public and Prime Minister David Cameron, the social networking site last week removed a page called ‘RIP Raoul Moat You Legend’ that had been set up to sympathise with the 37 year-old who shot himself after a six hour stand-off with the police last weekend.
When asked if they believe that Facebook should have removed the page, which had attracted over 30,000 members, a substantial 70% of the public said they thought it should. However, a significant minority (22%) thought the tribute page should be allowed to stay, perhaps reflecting some people’s arguments that a removal would go against freedom of speech.
Interestingly, there is a notable difference in the responses of supporters of the two political parties making up the Coalition Government. While 82% of people intending to vote for the Conservatives thought the page should be removed, only 57% of Liberal Democrat supporters agreed. 63% of people intending to vote for the Labour party thought the same.
