UK PM slams Elon Musk for saying far-right riots ‘inevitable’

LONDON — Britain’s Keir Starmer took aim at Elon Musk after the tech billionaire claimed the wave of far-right violence hitting the U.K. was “inevitable.”
The British prime minister’s spokesperson said there was “no justification” for Musk’s comments, posted this weekend on the X platform he now owns.
Britain has been gripped by violent disorder in multiple towns and cities in recent days, with mosques and hotels housing asylum seekers among the targets of far-right demonstrations.
The unrest began after the killing of three young girls in a knife attack on a children’s dance class in Southport last Monday.
Musk — who has faced criticism over the spread on X of false information about the attacker’s identity — claimed Sunday that “civil war is inevitable” in the U.K.
The billionaire tweeted the comment in response to a clip by conservative influencer Ashley St. Clair showing some of the disorder that has swept the U.K.
“There is no justification for comments like that,” Starmer’s spokesperson hit back Monday when pressed by reporters on the remarks. “What we’ve seen in this country is organized, illegal thuggery which has no place on our streets or online.”
“We’re talking about a minority of thugs that do not speak for Britain … The prime minister doesn’t share those [Musk’s] sentiments,” the PM’s spokesperson added.
Musk has made a play of his free-speech credentials as X’s owner and controversially reinstated the X account of British far-right activist Tommy Robinson.
The U.K. government is continuing to call on social media firms to do more to tackle “criminal material” on their platforms, although it remains unclear what tools, if any, it has to force compliance.
“There are areas where the social media companies do have clear requirements at the moment to remove criminal material and should be doing so, but sometimes take too long to do so,” Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told the BBC.
Downing Street confirmed ministers are making representations to social media firms.