Trolling the UK: the issues enraging Elon Musk, world’s richest ‘pub bore’
While Keir Starmer was trying to enjoy a family holiday in Madeira over the new year, Elon Musk was trying to spoil it,The world’s richest man has been using X to lob insults and slurs in the direction of the prime minister, while teasing the prospect of donating tens of millions of dollars to the Reform UK party,This potentially gamechanging money has meant his comments – which have been compared to those of a “pub bore” by some users on his own social media platform – have provoked (arguably unmerited) political reaction and media debate,So what issues have been enraging Musk?It was New Year’s Eve and 5,48 in the morning in London when Musk turned his attention to the “Pakistani-ancestry grooming gangs”, an issue to which he seems to have been new.
An account on X, with just over 1,500 followers, had posted a screenshot of the sentencing remarks of the judge Peter Rook QC in June 2013 after the conviction of five men involved in the exploitation and horrific abuse of young girls in the Oxford area.The screenshot containing details of hideous crimes had been reposted by an account with a larger following, with the additional comment that “out of political correctness the government did everything it could to cover up the crimes”.It is unclear to what government involvement the account was referring.Past criticism had focused on Oxfordshire county council and the local police.Nevertheless, Musk promoted the post to his 210 million followers.
“The government officials responsible, including those in the judiciary, need to fired [sic] in shame over this,” he wrote.The billionaire Tesla boss became momentarily distracted by Joe Biden’s mental health but he then moved on to retweet an old video of Tommy Robinson, a convicted fraudster whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, during one of his previous spells in prison.Robinson is serving an 18-month custodial sentence for contempt of court for repeating false allegations against a Syrian refugee, in breach of an injunction.Musk commented: “Why are rapists given suspended sentences in the UK, but this guy gets 18 months in solitary confinement, despite doing nothing violent?” A torrent of similarly framed tweets followed.GB News then reported that the minister for safeguarding, Jess Phillips, had rejected a request last year from Oldham council for a public inquiry into another grooming scandal.
“Shameful,” Musk tweeted,Starmer, a former director of public prosecutions, was accused, without evidence, of being part of a cover-up,Now, it was the turn of Kemi Badenoch to wade in,An inquiry into the child grooming gangs was “long overdue”, the Tory leader and former cabinet minister said,“Trials have taken place all over the country in recent years but no one in authority has joined the dots,” she said.
It subsequently emerged that the last Conservative government had also rejected calls for a public inquiry.“Why?” tweeted Musk.Musk’s determination to put a plague on both the Tory and Labour houses may well become a pressing problem for Starmer and Badenoch in 2025.“Britain needs Reform now,” Musk tweeted on 2 January.Rupert Lowe, the 67-year-old Reform MP for Great Yarmouth, might have been somewhat surprised by the sudden attention he was receiving on social media at the start of the new year.
Musk promoted two of his tweets.He did the same for Badenoch’s former rival for the Tory leadership Robert Jenrick, an immigration hardliner, after he wrote an article for the Telegraph entitled: “The truth about grooming gangs is finally coming out.”The leader of Reform UK, Nigel Farage, has let it be known that Musk is contemplating a sizeable donation to his party.Badenoch has said she does not believe it.She may have been given food for thought last month when Musk posed alongside Farage and his billionaire treasurer, Nick Candy, at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home.
Starmer’s approach to Musk’s invective has been to stay quiet,Not so the health secretary, Wes Streeting, who described Musk’s comments as “misjudged and certainly misinformed” on Friday, but asked him to “work with us”,And his attacks on the British economy did elicit a response from Downing Street,Musk claimed that “very few” businesses wanted to invest in Labour’s Britain,Downing Street rose to the bait, with a spokesperson commenting that business investment in the third quarter this year was estimated to have increased by 4.
5% compared with this time last year.Musk, however, used his digital loudhailer to double down on his attack.“Starmer was complicit in the RAPE OF BRITAIN when he was head of Crown Prosecution for 6 years,” tweeted Musk on Friday.“Starmer must go and he must face charges for his complicity in the worst mass crime in the history of Britain.”
USA win United Cup as Coco Gauff lays down marker against Iga Swiatek
In her short time as a professional tennis player, even as her career flourished and she established herself as one of the best in the world, Coco Gauff’s great progress was often overshadowed by the problem she just could not solve. By last June, Gauff had lost 11 of 12 matches against Iga Swiatek, an opponent she is likely to play for many more years.What was once a painfully one-sided non-rivalry may have turned into one of the best match-ups in professional tennis. On Sunday evening at the United Cup in Sydney, Gauff registered her second consecutive win over Swiatek, toppling the five-time grand slam champion 6-4, 6-4 after two hours of sublime tennis from both players.Gauff’s win over Swiatek, the world No 2, paved the way for the US to win the United Cup for the second time in the tournament’s three years as they defeated Poland 2-0
Australia’s bowlers batter India to keep home fires burning for World Championship tilt
In the very end, it was more fizzle than fizz, though something else had threatened earlier. Mind you, the very end came right in the middle, Australia winning the fifth Test against India halfway through the third day in Sydney.It was not even the middle if you counted overs bowled, the match using 190 of a possible 450 on a pitch that grew less fit for purpose with each passing day. That tallied with the broader contest: early finishes in Perth and Adelaide, rain in Brisbane, all resulting in the third-fewest deliveries ever bowled across a five-Test series.The series outcome is what should be regarded first, Australia going to 3-1 after chasing 162 in Sydney with six wickets in hand
Rybakina defends former coach as WTA investigates claims of misconduct
Elena Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, has insisted that her former coach Stefano Vukov did not mistreat her during their coaching partnership after it was revealed that Vukov is under investigation by the Women’s Tennis Association.A WTA spokesperson confirmed this week that Vukov is being investigated for allegedly breaking the WTA’s code of conduct and is provisionally suspended from the tour until the investigation has been concluded.“I can only say and I said it already before that he never mistreated me or it was never anything like that,” said Rybakina. Vukov was her first full-time coach and he worked as the Kazakh player’s primary coach for five years until they split in August 2024. Rybakina later hired the former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic as her new coach and they officially began their collaboration during the off-season
Australia win Border-Gavaskar series 3-1 against India – as it happened
That’s the end of our live blog, though Geoff will have a piece on the site later so keep an eye out for that. On behalf of everyone in the OBO bunker, thanks for your company and emails throughout this fascinating series. Bye!Unreal. This is [a trophy] that a few of us didn’t have. It’s been an amazing series
Tom Willis double puts Saracens back on track against Bristol after humbling
In the unpredictable world of top-flight rugby, here was a result we could all understand. Bristol arrived on a record-breaking run of 10 away wins, but seriously hindered by injuries. They fought with spirit and snatched a late try bonus point, but rarely looked likely to seriously trouble Saracens, who were hungry to atone for last Saturday’s record thrashing by Bath.The Bears have never won at this venue and victory would have been a perfect way to start what is already a momentous weekend with Ilona Maher’s bow for their women’s side at Ashton Gate on Sunday. But two first-half tries by the outstanding Sarries’ No 8 Tom Willis – including one of the most fleet-footed finishes you will see from a forward – helped Mark McCall’s men take a grip on the contest they never relinquished
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