Human trafficking is a “vile trade that must be stamped out wherever it thrives”, Sir Keir Starmer’s official spokesperson said, arguing that it should be “viewed as a global security threat similar to terrorism”.

Asked whether Andrew Tate should be extradited to the UK following reports he and Tristan Tate have left Romania for the US, Downing Street said: “Obviously this remains a live case and you wouldn’t expect us to comment on ongoing legal proceedings, this was a decision taken by the Romanian courts independently.

“But more widely, the PM has been clear that human trafficking should be viewed as a global security threat similar to terrorism.

“It’s a vile trade that must be stamped out wherever it thrives, that’s why we’ve invested heavily in new NCA technology, ramped up their staffing capabilities and boosted the CPS ability to make staffing decisions more quickly”

In January, Northern Ireland MP Sorcha Eastwood launched legal action against Andrew Tate and his brother over social media posts.

A lawyer for the Alliance Party MP said the posts were made on Friday, the day after she had told MPs that she was a “survivor of abuse” and had received rape threats.

Kevin Winters of KRW Law said: “We act on behalf of Sorcha Eastwood MP.

“We are instructed to issue legal proceedings against Andrew and Tristan Tate over their continued publication of social media postings on 10 January 2025.

“We can confirm service of correspondence on today’s date to their solicitors. In light of the sensitivities of the issues engaged, we have no further comment at this stage.”

His comments on social media came after Ms Eastwood told the House of Commons that a member of the public “came up and said they wanted to rape me” during a school visit she was leading at Stormont.

Victims of alleged sexual violence by Andrew Tate have called for his extradition from the United States to face justice in the UK.

Four women, who claim they were subjected to sexual violence by Tate between 2013 and 2015, have urged the Home Secretary to request his extradition in order not to fail “all British victims”.

They are bringing a civil case against him at the High Court in the UK, after the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decided not to prosecute in 2019.

In their statement, the women said: “We urge the UK Government to immediately request Tate’s extradition from the US to the UK to face justice.

“If it doesn’t, it won’t just be us it will be failing, but all British victims of alleged sexual violence.

“We do not doubt the Home Secretary’s personal commitment to victims of sexual violence, but we need action, not words.”

Tate, alongside his brother Tristan, were first arrested three years ago on allegations of trafficking minors, sexual intercourse with a minor and money laundering. They denied all claims.

The White House reportedly pressured the Romanian government to lift the travel restrictions on the Tate brothers, who are both dual US-UK citizens.

Read a full timeline of the Tate brothers’ life and alleged crimes:

President Donald Trump is the “primary” reason the Tate brothers feel safe to return to the US, their lawyers reportedly said in a statement.

“As a result, they are excited to call America their home again,” Joseph McBride said, according to the BBC.

He added that Andrew and Tristan Tate “plan to return to Romania at the end of March to meet the prosecutor before returning to the United States”.

Both brothers have been vocal supporters of Trump, with Romania’s foreign minister recently denying that the US administration had pressured Bucharest to lift travel restrictions.

The US president yesterday told reporters that he knew nothing about the brothers’ release.

Andrew Tate first rose to prominence after appearing on the reality TV show in 2016, but was removed after six days after a video emerged that appeared to show him attacking a woman.

At the time, the kickboxing champion said the footage had been edited and was a “total lie trying to make me look bad”.

However, his audience has significantly grown over the last decade and he now boasts over 10 million followers on X, after Elon Musk reinstated his account.

He regularly flaunts an ultra-luxurious lifestyle of private jets, cars and yachts, and previously told environmental activist Greta Thunberg that he would send a list of the “respective enormous emissions” of his 33 cars.

His impact in spreading misogyny among young men has been noted, and he has previously described women as “intrinsically lazy” and claimed “there was no such thing as an independent female”.

He also stated that he was “absolutely a misogynist” during an interview, and was previously banned from Twitter for saying women should “bear responsibility” for being sexually assaulted.

As a result of his ideology, he remains banned on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.

Keir Starmer is facing calls to raise reports Donald Trump’s administration pressed the Romanian government to lift travel restrictions that allowed Andrew Tate to leave the country where he is facing trafficking charges.

Alicia Kearns, the former chair of the Commons foreign affairs committee, said the prime minister had to make clear to Mr Trump that the Tate brothers “have charges to face in Romania and UK”, when he meets the US President in the White House.

The controversial social media influencer, 38, and his brother Tristan, 36, are facing a string of criminal charges in Romania including rape, human trafficking and exploiting women. Both deny all the charges.

Speculation around Andrew Tate’s wealth varies wildly, with the influencer describing himself as a “self-made multi-millionaire” who earnt his money from the adult entertainment industry and his various online courses.

“I had 75 women working for me in four locations and I was doing $600,000 a month from webcam,” he previously said in a podcast interview.

He also wrote on a website: “My job was to meet a girl, go on a few dates, sleep with her, test if she’s quality, get her to fall in love with me to where she’d do anything I say and then get her on webcam so we could become rich together.”

After his arrest, several of his possessions were seized by the Romanian authorities but he won a legal challenge last year to have them returned. They included a number of luxury cars including two McLarens, four Ferraris, a Maybach, a Maserati and a Lamborghini.

Andrew Tate has claimed that he and his brother are “largely misunderstood.”

”There’s a “lot of opinions about us, a lot of things that go around about us on the internet”, he told reporters after arriving in Florida.

“We’ve yet to be convicted of any crime in our lives ever. We have no criminal record anywhere on the planet, ever.”

Last December, a Romanian court ruled that the human trafficking case against the brothers couldn’t go to trial due to “significant procedural flaws” by the prosecution, but the case was sent back to officials for further review.

The brothers also face rape and sexual assault accusations in Britain.