Elon Musk must be a busy man. So why is he so interested in British politics? | uk news

There's no doubt that Elon Musk, the world's richest man and the US president-elect's best friend, was a busy man even before his Tesla truck exploded at the entrance to the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas on Sunday. january.

Musk was dancing late with his dad at Donald Trump's extravagant New Year's Eve party at Mar-a-Lago. Then there are the major companies he runs, including Tesla, Space X, Starlink, The Boring Company, Neuralink, and OpenAI.

But he still found time to start the year opining on British politics on X, the social media platform known as Twitter that he bought for $44 billion in 2022. Each post typically receives tens of millions of views.

There is no apparent reason for Musk's recent involvement in British affairs. He has made similar comments about German politics, sparking outrage over the Christmas period by publicly backing the far-right Alternative für Deutschland party ahead of February elections.

Musk was born in South Africa and has British and Dutch heritage. He moved to Canada and became a Canadian citizen before becoming a U.S. citizen in 2002. As Trump pointed out, “Elon” is a natural born alien and therefore prohibited by the Constitution from becoming the actual President of the United States.

The frequency with which billionaires speak suggests a determination to use their power and influence to spread their opinions. In recent months he has focused on hot political topics in Britain, including the issue of gang violence in the first few days of 2025.

Some parts of Britain are welcoming him. Musk was the chief guest at then Conservative Chancellor Rishi Sunak's artificial intelligence summit in November 2023. From then on he turned to the English Reform Party. Before Christmas, Musk invited MP Nigel Farage and Reform's new billionaire treasurer Nick Candy to his current residence at Mar-a-Largo. The three were photographed sitting beneath an old, attractive portrait of Trump, but it's unclear whether they received an audience with him.

The visit has sparked speculation that Musk could make a huge donation to UK reform, similar to the hundreds of millions of dollars he spent on Trump's winning campaign. The tech giant has denied the rumors and has election rules banning foreign donations. Nigel Farage highlighted Musk's potential windfall, but made clear he would welcome legal funding.

Meanwhile, the British government has refused to strengthen its laws in response to rumors of Musk's money. Ironically, Musk was quick to attack Labor Party volunteers when they came forward to help Democrats during the US election. He accused Labor campaign leader Morgan McSweeney of “violating US criminal laws against foreign interference in elections”.

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1:54 Can Musk be friends with Trump and China?

The UK's Online Safety Act 2023 may be one reason tech entrepreneurs are increasingly engaging in criticism of British authorities, who they claim are presiding over an “oppressive police state”. If X and other platforms host disinformation or misinformation that promotes racially or religiously aggravated public order violations or incitement to violence, they will be subject to hefty fines of up to £18m or 10% of global revenues (whichever is greater). Charges may apply.

Musk's interest in Britain grew after Labor won the general election last summer and riots broke out after the killings of three young girls at a dance class in Southport. False rumors about the attackers were spread on X, including accounts that Musk had unblocked. When Sir Keir Starmer warned tech giants that it was also a “crime” to encourage violent disorder online, Musk countered by calling X “insane” and later claimed “civil war is inevitable” in the UK.

More than 19 million YouTube listeners watched Musk discuss the UK's “prison overcrowding situation” on Joe Rogan's podcast. He also participated in ‘What on earth is going on in England?’ This is a response to a right-wing American's exaggerated post about an official report on Islamic radicalization in the UK.

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1:25 What does Musk get from Trump?

Musk describes himself as X's “chief troll officer.” People from this country he has connected with online include populist academic Liz Truss and Winston Marshall, the son of GB News owner Paul Marshall.

Despite his loud support for longer prison sentences, Musk posted on Robinson, known as Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is currently serving an 18-month sentence for breaching a court order by repeating defamation claims against a young Syrian refugee in a banned video.

In the first 36 hours of 2025, Musk's The final comment relates to a story first reported by GB News in which Mr Phillips, the Minister for Protection and Violence against Women and Girls, refused to order a national inquiry into grooming gangs in Oldham.

Mr Phillips responded that such investigations should be the responsibility of local councils. “He should be in jail,” Musk said. His intervention put the old scandal back on the agenda. New Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called on January 2 for a “full national inquiry into the rape gang scandal”.

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2:41 Billionaire best friends watch SpaceX launch.

Badenoch's response to Musk's repeated interference appears contradictory. At Prime Minister's Questions last November, she challenged Starmer with an online petition calling for Musk to call for another general election. But she told Radio 4's Today program last December that while she did not make any proposals to strengthen the law, she said: “I think we need to make sure there are no foreign countries, no undue influence, no bad actors influencing our politics.”

As she approached some of the policies of reform, the Conservative leader reportedly complained that GB News was giving Mr Farage's party too much of a platform. Mr Beydenok later dismissed the claims, which were made in a national newspaper, as “nonsense”.

Read more: Could Musk act as a middleman between China and Trump? Musk, accused of censoring right-wing X accounts, spent more than $250 million to help get Trump elected.

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0:27 Musk and Trump dance at the YMCA

Meanwhile, Musk is wrangling with the Labor government. Late last year, he mocked ministers' hopes for increased investment in the UK, including Tesla, with a blunt remark about X: “Few companies will be willing to invest in the UK with this government.” Downing Street hit back, claiming the Starmer government was “shamefully” pro-growth.

For some, especially many young people, Musk is a folk hero. But in a recent British poll, 66% of those surveyed said Musk “should not have any influence” in British politics, including just over half of British reform supporters. But despite this resistance to foreign interference, it is too late to stop Musk from actively contributing to the national debate.

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Self-evidently, Elon Musk understands emerging technologies such as AI, which he calls “the most disruptive force in history.” He told Chancellor Rishi Sunak: “One of the challenges of the future is how we find meaning in life.” “There will come a point when you won’t need a job. AI will do everything.”

As another challenging year begins, Musk will gain more influence as Trump's power czar. The richest person on Earth will be the biggest political actor. It remains to be seen whether they will continue to engage in disputes with foreign powers because they are too busy with domestic issues. Perhaps his new boss will try to rule him out of fear of being overshadowed. But in the meantime, he's making more headlines than any of the country's current politicians.

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