An emergency alert planned for St George's Day risks overshadowing the event's festivities, according to a political commentator.
Mobile phone users across the UK are bracing themselves for an emergency alert message, which will be sent to devices across the country on Sunday, 23 April.
A message will pop up on the home screens of mobile phones and tables from 3pm with a loud siren-like sound or vibration, which will last for about 10 seconds.
The unprecedented event will coincide with St George’s Day, which Heritage Party leader David Kurten fears could spoil the occasion.
David Kurten says sending emergency alerts to phones across the UK could 'scare' users
GB News / PA
Speaking on GB News, Kurten said the move marks a “scary” course of action from the Government.
He told Michelle Dewberry: “It's terrible. It's ridiculous. It's such an intrusion into people's everyday life and it's going to happen on a Sunday afternoon when a lot of people are going to be relaxing with their families.
“It's also going to be St. George's Day, which is England's National Day. Of course it's going to ruin that day for our country as well.”
Questioned by Dewberry over how a 10-second event can ruin the occasion, Kurten remained insistent over his sentiment.
An emergency message will appear on all UK mobile phones as a siren-like noise soundsTwitter/Cabinet Office“Because it's like an intrusion”, he said. “It’s really Orwellian. It's like imposing a new system on us and you don't know where this is going.
“We've had the last three years of lockdowns and all these kind of coercion and fear mongering in the campaigns we've seen and people are like very disturbed by that.
“I think this is just another example of the Government doing something which is going to increase the level of fear in the general population and another intrusion of the government into our personal lives and everyday lives.”
The emergency alert is serving as a test for a new Government system which will issue advice on rate occasions where there is a threat to life.
The notifications will initially focus on serious weather-related events such as fires and severe flooding.
Organisations such as the charity Refuge feel the test could endanger vulnerable people by potentially alerting abusers to the location of a hidden phone.
The Government said it had been working with the organisation to ensure there are no adverse effects for vulnerable people.
Drivers have also been advised to not look at or touch their phone until it is safe to do so when the alert goes off.
As organisations issue warnings over the alert, David Kurten believes it could “scare” some tech users across the UK.
He said on Dewbs & Co: “A lot of people aren't going to be expecting it and they could be quite scared by it.
“We've got sirens that we had in the Second World War, but there's not been a single test of them in the last 80 years.
“Why suddenly now is the Government trying to do this in our own mobile phone devices?
“This is really intrusive and Orwellian and it shouldn't be done. I think this is something the Government should just stay out of it and keep off our phones.”
Oliver Dowden says the move is a crucial one for the Government, labelling it an "important development".
He said: "This will allow us to validate the effectiveness of the system and build familiarity and trust, laying the foundations for the potential wider use of emergency alerts in the future.
"There will be a very high threshold for its use based on strict criteria centred on an immediate risk to life. Despite this, members of the public will be able to opt out of the system if they do not wish to receive emergency alerts.
"The system is secure, with alerts only able to be sent by authorised governmental and emergency services users."
