In my Spectator column this week I’ve written about the Online Safety Bill, the latest version of which was published today. For those not up to speed, the aim of the Bill (in the words of Nadine Dorries) is “to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online”, i.e., turn the internet into a safe space.
Should you be concerned about it? Yes, obviously, but perhaps not for the reasons you think. The real issue with the Bill is not that it will make the big social media companies remove posts that are currently permissible – although it will, since the Government is going to force them to take down what it calls “legal but harmful” content, so stuff you’re able to say offline will become prohibited online. No, the bigger problem is that it doesn’t do nearly enough to force YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and the rest not to wield their red pens. It’s a missed opportunity.
Many of my fellow free speech warriors see this Bill as an attempt by po-faced Lord Chamberlain-types to rein in the libertarian excesses of the worldwide web – and Conservative MPs often frame it in this way, too, believing the public wants them to ‘get tough’ with out-of-control social media giants.
But the days when Twitter described itself as “the free speech wing of the free speech party” are long gone. Facebook removed 26.9 million pieces of content for violating its “community standards” on “hate speech” in the last quarter of 2020, 17 times as many as the 1.6 million instances of ‘hate speech’ it deleted in the last quarter of 2017. The real problem with this bill is that it doesn’t do enough to check the already rampant censoriousness of Big Tech. Twitter is more like the authoritarian wing of the Democratic party.
The bill contains little to stop these companies pledging to remove scads of “legal but harmful” content in their terms and conditions – as they do at present – save for some wishy-washy provisions about the need to “take into account” freedom of expression when deciding whether to remove “content of democratic importance” and “journalistic content” and to “have regard” for free speech. To understand how ineffective these clauses are likely to be, think of the different legal duties included in the bill as being like football teams. The duty to remove “content that is harmful to adults” is Manchester City. The need to “take into account” and “have regard” for freedom of expression is Plymouth Argyle.
Worth reading in full.
Stop Press: Jennifer Powers, the Legislative Affairs Director of the Free Speech Union, has written a good piece for UnHerd about the way the Online Safety Bill will be used to muzzle feminists defending sex-based women’s rights.
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Not good news. Seems he/Trump caved in to the leftard violence against Tesla. That just emboldens the fascists.
Will DOGE survive? Will the US survive the coming civil war that the Leftards are agitating for, and apparently planning for?
Whitehouse says story is bollox.
Yes don’t see it anywhere else.
Good news if false. It would just show weakness as the leftard fascists gear up to start a civil war.
yep, when a 2nd April article quotes an article written the day before …
I suspect it was his activities in Wisconsin for this week’s election that created the pressure from the Cabinet that put him over the edge.
Meantime, fun while it lasted. And hopefully lessons learned now by Cabinet and some trickle into UK (probably not).
Whatever els3 the Overton window has shifted considerably.
If only Tesla made a petrol powered truck I’d seriously consider buying one.
In the spirit of solidarity.
If Tesla did make a proper car it wouldn’t be possible as a business – the ONLY way it has ever turned a profit is by having greenwashing politicians shower it with money for “saving the planet”.
Musk is a genius, just not in the ways most people think.
Yes, and no. The money was there, and he took it, and spent it saving free speech for sceptics.
I think he is indeed a business and engineering genius.
“I think he is indeed a business and engineering genius.”
Please qualify this statement.
Did that rocket really ‘return to base’?
And in the Private Sector?
Amazing!
Trump has realised what I have known since 2016 at least : Musk is an effing liability and a conman.
No on this I disagree. He is certainly a multifaceted character but amongst the great tech bilionaires he’s a stand out figure.
“Stand out figure”… for what, exactly?
By far the smartest, capable of independent thinking and my gut instinct is he’s broadly on the side of freedom and individualism.
But I also have hunch that nothing I say will change your mind, so there we are.
MDS muchly?
What does MDS mean?
Musk Derangement Syndrome?
Not at all. I know too much about him.
DOGE is bigger than Musk (as it should be). He has shown what can be done and has assembled a good team.
The DOGE concept and it’s underlying principles are sound. I think it is probably a good time for Musk to step back.
Thinking seems to be he’s established it, and him stepping back will remove an obvious hate figure for the left to attack, while allowing DOGE to continue to pursue efficiencies – Tesla share price could do with a little more of Musks focus I’d say as well, so good move
This split is being dressed up as amicable because:
Trump is vain and proud and can’t admit to having been conned by someone he so publicly got into bed with.
Musk has realised the game is up now that Trump has figured him out for what he is and cannot afford to fall out with Trump lest Trump gets angry and tells the world the real reason he has kicked him out.
Mark my words. I have been watching Musk closely since 2011.
And don’t give me all the “Musk has saved free speech” crap. The minute it suits him he will be censoring Twitter/X. He already has, regarding negative events at SpaceX. Heck, the reason he bought Twitter was to silence critics of Tesla. Musk is a very petty person and a megalomaniac and a bully.
I am not happy about any of this. The state, US state included, needs to be shrunk, of course, and I hope DOGE continues.
Reminder: Musk wanted Trump on side to protect Tesla despite Trump’s very necessary war against all things “save the planet” (electric cars being one of those things). Without TSLA being the price it is, Musk is DEAD IN THE WATER.
If I was wealthier than I am, I would now be taking out a strong SHORT position in TSLA. It’s something I was considering a while back, thank god I didn’t pull the trigger…
As always, follow the money.
Good luck to all.
But you’re not wealthy he’s the richest man in the world.
That tells me he’s doing something right which you’re not unless of course material comforts are not your cup of tea, which is also an entirely legitimate indeed admirable position.
I have no problem with wealthy people. I consider myself successful enough in this regard and I am very happy with my life and achievements so far. But it’s the manner in which Elon has become wealthy – theft and crony capitalism.
And by the way – despite what is written everywhere (including in the article referenced above), he did not found Tesla, for a start. He stole it, and drove the founder to an early grave.
And his wealth is almost entirely in TSLA paper. Which, if the price crashes, will leave your hero all but penniless.
Musk MUST continue to sell his TSLA, to fund his incredibly wasteful and messed up endeavours (private and professional). But he mustn’t sell too much, because he could trigger a rush by all to sell. That’s already happening, anyway…
Don’t suffer from Hero Worship. If you do, at least choose someone perhaps worthy of it. Your first candidates should be those people you know, first hand.
Correction, I was wrong that Martin Eberhard (co-founder of Tesla with Marc Tarpenning in 2003) died, he has not. Apologies. Not sure why I thought that.
And there’s me thinking it’s because he wants to spend more time with his ever-expanding family.
Is it 14 kids he’s up to now? Does he live with any of them? Where does he even find the time to be a dad?
Kids preferably need a present father growing up, not a mostly absent sperm donor. No amount of money can be a substitute for that.
How do you know he’s not present or doesn’t want to be present?
Has it not occurred to you that perhaps these various mothers simply wanted to have a kid by the most brilliant and virile man in the world?
Do you actually understand human nature?
How can you be “present” in 14 kids’ lives, who are all obviously at various stages in their childhood, reaching milestones and going through the different challenges of child development along the way? Do you even have the first clue what you’re on about?
“Human nature”, as I understand it, generally means a man wants to father children and actually stick around to bring them up. I know, right? Radical.
Do you happen to be privy to the set-up of Musk’s personal family life? Because I never said I was. But if he’s got that amount of kids with several women he can hardly be fully committed to being a dad to all AND a successful businessman of this calibre, can he?
Or perhaps this basic concept didn’t occur to you, given you so obviously idolise the guy and think the sun shines out of his arse.
Jack is suffering from a bad case of Hero Worship where Musk is concerned. I understand he isn’t alone.
Totally. I mean, for sure the guy has done some impressive stuff and I’m not going to deny he’s transformed Twitter compared to what it was, but nobody is beyond reproach. Some people acting like we’ve just insulted their mother because we dare to say anything critical about the world’s richest man that nobody’s ever going to meet..LOL Blimey. Probably a man-crush
“…most brilliant and virile man in the world”
Keep drinking the Koolaid, Jack!
https://redstate.com/bobhoge/2025/04/02/fake-news-karoline-leavitt-calls-report-that-musk-is-on-the-outs-at-doge-garbage-n2187426
The Mail story, and this repost, **might** be fake news.
Whitehouse says it is bollox.
I think that one of the main reasons was this:
“…There were mutterings of tension with Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
Musk was reported to not follow the White House chain of command, which would require him to keep Wiles in the loop more.”
He was trying to do a lot of pioneering stuff, and I reckon the woman drove him out by endless nagging complaints, in order to solidify her own authority, and put the brakes on everything.
Who was organizing all the terrorist attacks on Tesla, we wonder? It’s all very strange.
”Musk is a “special government employee,” which has a 130-day time limit, meaning he was scheduled to go back to business life at the end May anyway.”
Seems highly unlikely; with only a month to go Musk would simply depart with the message “foundations of DOGE well established” and everyone’s egos in tact.
Surprised the Sceptic has fallen for this. Musk has an opportunity to make history. History that will be blurred out in any corporate success. Musk is no Henry Ford in terms of EV’S. My milk float was electric 60 years ago
FAKE NEWS ALERT
Musk is going nowhere, suggest DS corrects its post
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/04/fake-news-media-says-elon-musk-is-stepping/
Erm, what does POTUS say? Has he said it’s fake?
Draining the swamp was never going to be easy. Elon has made a fantastic contribution to exposing and destroying widespread corruption. We need to do the same in the UK. Vote Reform.
People need to be very careful about supporting Musk.
.
His words are all very splendid but everything he does, from building ridiculous and unnecessary electric vehicles to littering our skies with low orbit satellites, seem tailor made for the digital gulag the so called “elites” are determined to lock all of humanity in.
Right from the beginning it was planned for Musk’s position to be temporary.