1 day ago
Last Updated:January 06, 2025, 17:00 IST
Addressing the issue of grooming gangs, the Prime Minister described child sexual exploitation as "utterly sickening" and acknowledged the systemic failures that left victims unheard for years.
UK PM Keir Starmer and Elon Musk. (Credit: Reuters)
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday defended his stance and hit out at Tech billionaire Elon Musk following days of hostile attacks from the latter over historical child rape crimes in northern England.
While addressing a press conference, Starmer emphasised on safeguarding the vitcims and dismissed the Tesle founder’s comments.
“Those who are spreading lies and misinformation as far and as wide as possible are not interested in victims, they’re interested in themselves," Starmer told the reporters, without naming Musk.
‘Utterly Sickening’
Addressing the issue of grooming gangs, the Prime Minister described child sexual exploitation as “utterly sickening" and acknowledged the systemic failures that left victims unheard for years.
“And for many, many years, too many victims have been completely let down, let down by perverse ideas about community relations or by the idea that institutions must be protected above all else. And they’ve not been listened to, and they’ve not been heard," he said.
He further defended his record and said that he had tackled the issue “head on" as director of public prosecutions.
“We changed, or I changed, the whole prosecution approach, because I wanted to challenge, and did challenge the myths and stereotypes that were stopping those victims being heard. So we changed the entire approach, not without criticism at the time, I might add," he added.
“We’ve seen this playbook many times, whipping up of intimidation and threats of violence, hoping that the media will amplify it," Starmer said.
“When the poison of the far right leads to serious threats to Jess Phillips and others, then in my book, a line has been crossed," he added.
Declined To Respond To Musk
Starmer further declined to respond to Musk’s comment regarding the safeguarding minister Jess Phillips and his broader criticism of the British government.
“And those attacking Jess Phillips, who I’m proud to call a colleague and a friend on protecting victims – Jess Phillips has done 1,000 times more than they’ve even dreamt about when it comes to protecting victims of sexual abuse throughout her entire career," he said.
Starmer further refused to engage directly with Musk’s suggestion that “America should liberate the people of Britain from their tyrannical government." He declined to comment on the statement, underscoring his focus on domestic concerns.
What Did Musk Say?
Elon Musk has also criticised the British government over the Rotherham sex scandal, where a report revealed that despite being aware, police and child protection agencies failed to prosecute thousands of child sexual exploitation crimes occurring annually, primarily involving networks of Pakistani-origin men.
The tech billionaire had posted messages on his X account saying that Phillips should be jailed and called her a “rape genocide apologist", and criticising Starmer for failing to prosecute gangs.
In one post, Musk called on King Charles III to dissolve parliament and order new elections in Britain. In another, he called for Starmer’s safeguarding minister, Jess Philips, to be imprisoned, calling her “pure evil" and “a wicked creature." On Monday, he also said Starmer should be in prison.
Musk accused Starmer of failing to bring “rape gangs" to justice when he was director of public prosecutions. Musk also suggested that Jess Phillips, minister for the prevention of violence against women and girls, “deserves to be in prison" for refusing a request for a national public inquiry into the scandal.
The billionaire, who has been highly critical of Starmer including during anti-immigration riots that rocked England and Northern Irish cities last year, upped the ante against the PM over the Southport stabbing attack in July 2024 that left three children dead and sparked violence across the country.
Musk’s comments came after Phillips rejected a request for the government to lead a public inquiry into child sexual exploitation in Oldham.
(With inputs from agencies)
Location :London, United Kingdom (UK)
First Published:January 06, 2025, 16:57 IST
News world ‘Spreading Lies…’: UK PM Starmer Hits Back At Elon Musk On Child Sexual Abuse Claims
