The BBCNigel Farage has defended Elon Musk after the billionaire attacked the UK government’s response to grooming gangs on X, his social media platform.
In a series of posts over several days, Musk suggested Sir Keir Starmer had failed to prosecute gangs and said Home Office minister Jess Phillips “deserves to be in jail”.
It came as the Home Office defended its decision to reject a request to lead a public inquiry into child sexual abuse in Oldham. Conservatives and Reform UK have called for a wider national inquiry.
Asked about Musk’s comments on Sunday with Laura Queensberg, Farage said he had used “very strong terms” but that “free speech came back” to his ownership of X.
Farage has also come under pressure over his wider relationship with Musk, who is said to be considering donating money to his Reform Party.
Musk’s latest foray into UK politics comes after Phillips, a Home Office security minister, directed Oldham Council to launch its own local inquiry into historic child sexual abuse in the town, as was established in the inquiry. Rochdale And Telford. The local authority had demanded a government-led inquiry.
The tech tycoon seized on the decision, which was taken in October, and launched a scathing attack on the British government online.
He suggested that Sir Keir had failed to properly prosecute gang-rapes while he was Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), and repeatedly shared the posts of Reform and Conservative MPs. In which a national investigation has been demanded.
Musk, who is a key adviser to incoming US President Donald Trump, called the prime minister a “two-level curmudgeon” and accused Phillips of being a “rape genocide apologist”.
Asked about the comments, Farage said “difficult things are said… on both sides of the debate”.
He continued: “This guy happens to be the richest man in the world, but also, the fact that he’s now bought Twitter, actually gives us a place where we can be fair about a lot of things. We can have an open discussion… we may find it offensive, but that’s a good thing, not a bad thing.”
Earlier this week, Farage distanced himself. Himself with Musk’s support for Tommy Robinson – A far-right activist serving a prison sentence for contempt of court.
PA MediaIn an interview broadcast on BBC One on Sunday morning, Farage said the public was right to be angry about grooming gangs.
He added: “I think people ask themselves what has happened to our country? How could this happen? Why does everyone want to cover it up? Why hasn’t there been a full public inquiry?”
On Saturday, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper defended Phillips as “fearless and strong” and someone who for years “has campaigned tirelessly for justice that has been badly damaged by local institutional failure”. Disappointed.”
In a separate letter seen by the BBC, Phillips and Cooper wrote to the Conservatives explaining why they asked Oldham Council to set up its own inquiry rather than approve a request for a government-led one. The previous Conservative government rejected a similar request in 2022.
The letter pointed out that the local authority had already started its own inquiry, adding that the victims had said “loud and clear” that they wanted action.
“The crimes committed by grooming gangs in Oldham were appalling,” he wrote.
“Young girls were abused in an extremely cruel and tragic way. The victims and the community need to know that all steps have been taken to ensure that justice is served in the future and that children are adequately protected.”
He said he supported an independent review commissioned by Mayor Andy Burnham, which covered historic abuse in Oldham and new police investigations into other child protection work in Greater Manchester. caused
The letter was highlighted. Child sexual abuse inquiry workwhich published its final results in 2022. She made it clear that “abuse must be pursued and challenged everywhere without fear or support” – whether in care homes, churches, homes or in grooming gangs.
Professor Alexis Jay, who led the inquiry, said in November that she felt “disappointed” that none of its 20 recommendations to tackle abuse had been implemented more than two years later. happened
On Friday, Health Secretary West Streeting said the government had been “getting on with the job” of implementing the recommendations “in full” since taking office in July.
There have been several investigations into grooming gangs in various parts of England, including Rotherham, Bristol, Cornwall and Derbyshire.
An inquiry into abuse in Rotherham found that 1,400 children were sexually abused over a 16-year period, mainly by British Pakistani men.
An investigation in Telford found that 1,000 girls were abused over a 40-year period – and that some cases were not investigated because of “race anxiety”.
Police statistics for 2023 show that 3.7 percent of all sex crimes against children reported to the police were gang-based child sexual abuse.
According to the data, 26% of gang-based child sexual abuse occurred in families, compared to 17% in gangs that included grooming gangs.
- Watch Sundays with Laura Queensberg at 9am on BBC One