Former UK deputy PM Nick Clegg leaves Meta ahead of Trump’s return

Nick Clegg, former UK deputy PM, is stepping down from his role at Meta as president of Global Affairs ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president on 20 January.

After nearly seven years at Meta, Clegg will hand over his responsibilities to his deputy, Joel Kaplan, a former White House Deputy Chief of Staff and Republican. Kaplan is known for handling Meta’s Republican relations and is seen by analysts as a strategic choice amid the changing political landscape in Washington.  

Clegg said that he will spend a few months “handing over the reins” and representing Facebook at international gatherings before moving on to new ventures. 

Clegg said in a post on Facebook: “My time at the company coincided with a significant resetting of the relationship between 'big tech' and the societal pressures manifested in new laws, institutions and norms affecting the sector.

"I hope I have played some role in seeking to bridge the very different worlds of tech and politics – worlds that will continue to interact in unpredictable ways across the globe.” 

Since joining Meta in 2018, Clegg has helped bridge gaps between governments, regulators, and the tech sector, as well as played a key role in creating Meta’s Oversight Board to oversee content moderation. 

Clegg has also been critical of Meta’s content moderation decisions and has acknowledged that they have sometimes unfairly penalised users and has been openly critical of Elon Musk’s influence over X, claiming it has turned into a “one-man hyper-partisan hobby horse”. 

Trump has previously criticised Meta for alleged censorship of conservative speech but relations with the tech giant’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, have recently improved with Zuckerberg even congratulating Trump on his victory and donating $1m to an inauguration fund.

This article first appeared on Campaign sister title Performance Marketing World.