It’s handbags at dawn between Elon Musk and Keir Starmer’s Labour Government, says Jawad Iqbal in the Spectator. It’s a funny way of showing Britain is “open for business”. Here’s an excerpt.
The Tesla billionaire and owner of Twitter is hopping mad after being denied an invitation to a Government-led tech summit due to take place next month. In response Musk – certainly no one’s idea of a shrinking violet – said on X: “I don’t think anyone should go to the U.K. when they’re releasing convicted paedophiles in order to imprison people for social media posts.” He appeared to be referring to the prisoner early release scheme, initiated by the Labour government to ease pressure on a prison system it has claimed is “on the point of collapse” due to a lack of capacity.
The spat is over the International Investment summit, scheduled to start on October 14th. The Government hopes it will provide a boost for investment in the U.K. two weeks before the Autumn budget. The event is being hosted by Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, and Jonathan Reynolds, the Business Secretary, with the avowed aim of showing that the U.K. is “open for business”. Leaving Musk out of the conversation might be considered a touch eccentric, if not downright stupid. Whichever way you look at it, closing the door to one of the world’s richest and most prominent entrepreneurs is certainly an odd way of signalling openness to investment.
What exactly is behind such folly? It follows a spat between Musk and the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer over the role that social media platforms played in the summer riots. Violent unrest flared across Britain after three children were killed in a knife attack in Southport. Starmer issued a warning to social media companies at the time: “Violent disorder was clearly whipped up online. That is also a crime. It is happening on your premises, and the law must be upheld everywhere.” Spoken like the public prosecutor Starmer used to be.
Musk – as anyone will tell you – doesn’t respond too well to feedback or criticism. He was quick to offer his own explanation of the root cause of the rioting, blaming Britain’s multiculturalism: “If incompatible cultures are brought together without assimilation, conflict is inevitable,” he wrote, adding on a post of a police arrest: “Is this Britain or the Soviet Union?” This provocative counter narrative certainly rattled cages in Government, with ministers condemning the comments as “totally unjustifiable” and “pretty deplorable”. Hence the apparent cold-shouldering of Musk.
Worth reading in full.
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