UK Prime Minister Starmer criticizes ‘lies’ after Musk’s sermon | Children’s rights news

Starmer is defending his record as a prosecutor after tech billionaire Musk attacked him and other Labor figures over the handling of child rape cases.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer defended his record and criticized the “lies you’re spreading” days after Elon Musk’s hostile attacks over historic child rapes in northern England.

“Those who spread lies and misinformation as widely as possible are not interested in the victims, they are interested in themselves,” Starmer said on Monday, without mentioning the American billionaire Musk by name.

He was speaking during a National Health Service event in Surrey, UK, in response to a question about Musk’s recent attacks on his handling of child rape cases.

Focus on historical scandals involving the sexual exploitation of children Grooming bands Which first came to light during Starmer’s tenure as Director of Public Prosecutions, Musk has in recent days attacked him and other Labor figures over the issue.

Musk’s sermon, which included demands for a new public inquiry into the scandal, prompted some opposition politicians in the UK to join the criticism and calls for a new national inquiry.

“We have seen this playbook many times, sparking intimidation and threats of violence, in the hope that the media will amplify it,” Starmer said.

The Prime Minister confirmed that Protection Minister Jess Phillips had received serious threats. In a post on his social media platform last week, Musk described her as a “rape genocide apologist.”

Saying he was making a more general point rather than directly addressing Musk’s comments, Starmer said: “When far-right poison leads to serious threats to Jess Phillips and others, a line has been crossed in my book.

He added: “I enjoy the substance of politics, and the robust debate we have to have, but that must be based on facts and truth, not lies.”

This issue has long been seized upon by far-right figures, especially those in prison Tommy Robinsonone of the UK’s most famous far-right provocateurs, who has been praised by Musk.

In an X post on Thursday, Musk claimed that Robinson was in prison “for telling the truth” and that he “should be released.”

A 2014 investigation found that at least 1,400 children were sexually exploited in Rotherham, northern England, between 1997 and 2013.

It seems to be musky With great interest In Britain’s political landscape since the center-left Labor Party won a landslide election victory in July 2024, ending 14 years of Conservative rule.