MPs call on Musk to answer for X's role in riots: ‘He doesn't care'
| Updated:
MPs plan to summon Elon Musk to parliament to answer for X's role in spreading misinformation during the summer riots. What does this mean for the already turbulent relationship between Musk and the new Labour government?
Listen to this article
Read time: 3 minutes
In brief:
- The UK parliament's Science, Technology and Innovation Committee is seeking to summon Elon Musk to answer questions about X's role in spreading misinformation during summer riots, particularly regarding false information that allegedly contributed to violence.
- Musk and the new Labour government have a tense relationship, with Musk making provocative comments about UK politics, including tweets about a potential "civil war" and critiquing Prime Minister Keir Starmer, which has caused friction between them.
- Committee chair Chi Onwurah says the aim is to understand X's technological impact and social consequences.
What’s the story?
Elon Musk will be summoned to parliament to answer questions about X’s role in spreading misinformation and disinformation in the summer riots that took place around the UK.
MPs are calling on the X owner to testify in a Commons science and technology select committee social media inquiry that was launched today, with hearings beginning in the new year.
During the summer riots, false information about the identity of the person who killed three young girls attending a Taylor Swift dance class in Southport spread on social platforms, including X. It’s believed this spread of false content contributed to the violence and protests that ensued.
Chi Onwurah, chair of parliament’s Science, Innovation and Technology Committee, spoke to Emily and Jon on today’s episode of The News Agents.
“The aim of the committee inquiry is to understand how the algorithm, the technology...drove that misinformation and disinformation, spreading so quickly that it put lives in danger.”
“What is the role of the government in stopping and preventing that, in protecting the public, and in monitoring – or regulating – these social media companies?
But what chance does parliament have of getting Elon Musk to engage?
Elon Musk summoned to parliament over X role in summer riots
Will Elon Musk work with the Labour government?
The move to summon Musk to essentially have to answer for the role his platform played in the summer riots will add to an already turbulent relationship between the richest man in the world and the new Labour government.
As the riots unfolded, it wasn’t just the algorithm changes that Musk had made to the platform that were causing increased tension in the UK. It was Musk himself, who repeatedly weighed in on British politics and issues, sometimes even prodding the Prime Minister.
“It has been noticed in government circles, the unusual interest that Musk has shown in Britain since Starmer came to office,” Lewis Goodall says on Wednesday’s episode.
When the Prime Minister’s official account had posted: “We will not tolerate attacks on mosques or on Muslim communities”, Musk replied: “Shouldn’t you be concerned about attacks on *all* communities?”
Another tweet from Musk said “civil war is inevitable” in the UK. One simply read: ‘Two-tier Kier”.
One minister called Musk’s comments “deplorable”.
Fast-forward a few months, Musk - again, the richest man in the world - didn’t receive an invite into the international investor summit Labour held in October. Was it payback? The government insisted it wasn’t, but Musk took it personally.
Since then, Musk has been catapulted into an even more powerful figure in the US and on the world stage as a backer of, and now advisor to, Donald Trump - who of course, we now know will be the next president of the United States.
Peter Mandelson urged the UK to “connect” with Musk whilst speaking to Lewis Goodall on Friday’s episode of The News Agent.
“He’s got too big a footprint in too many industrial areas for us to ignore him,” he said.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do in this country as a Labour government in overcoming that misunderstanding… and getting into some sort of communication with Elon Musk, because he’s clearly a very important and influential entrepreneur and I think we should make it our business to connect with him.”
Onwurah recognises “Elon Musk now has an important role as an advisor to President Trump”.
“And one of the reasons why I'm keen to invite Mr. Musk on the committee is because it's important that we are not closing down the debate or views.”
However, she says, this doesn’t mean they will be a “walkover” when dealing with Musk.
The News Agents take
“Broadly speaking, it feels to me that there are two approaches,” Jon says,
“One is that you say, ‘okay, look, we've just got to cozy up to him and say nice things about him and get him off this hook about him being anti-British, and the other one saying we have got to hold this man to account, and we're going to bring him before the Select Committee.”
But Emily’s not convinced that summoning Musk to the Commons Select Committee is going to have much effect.
“I hate to break this to you, but Elon Musk is bigger than the Commons Select Committee on technology, innovation and science.
“He doesn't care what the British government thinks. He simply doesn't care what individual governments are doing. Because he's talking across all of them.”
Onwurah insists this is not a “stunt” - and that "nobody is above the law", something that Emily questions.
"Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, who's probably now the most influential man in the world, can put whatever he wants out, as disinforming as it is, and get away with it, and he will be above the law," she said.
Although Emily may think it’s wishful thinking that Musk will engage, she finds it admirable nonetheless.
“If you don't go down the ‘Keir Starmer, would you like to go and have tea with Elon Musk in America?’ route, then you're leaving it basically to the smaller, more individual components of our government, of our parliament, of our law, of our legislators, to say; ‘what do we do now?’”
“You recognise this is happening. You call out the site for what it is, and then you say, what are we going to do about it and see if Musk does want to engage.”
Listen to the latest episode of The News Agents.
