UK Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey accuses Elon Musk of “crimes” on X

Sir Ed Davey, leader of the UK’s Liberal Democrats, has urged communications regulator Ofcom to investigate Elon Musk over alleged breaches of the Online Safety Act on social media platform X. 

Davey claimed that X is hosting harmful content, including grooming and self-harm materials, and argued Musk should be held personally accountable for “crimes” he claimed are reportedly being committed under the billionaire’s leadership.

New UK law

The Online Safety Act, which came into effect earlier this year, requires tech platforms to remove illegal content and enforce age verification or face steep penalties, among other regulations. Davey claimed to the BBC that Musk had dismantled X’s child safety team, enabling disturbing content to spread. 

“He (Musk) is actually, I think, committing crimes,” Davey stated. “Ofcom should go after him. The laws are there. What his business is doing is against the law because it is disgusting.”

X has faced criticism in the UK and Europe over content moderation policies since Musk’s takeover. Musk, in turn, has accused regulators of suppressing free speech, calling Ofcom’s enforcement “heavy-handed” and the legislation “suppression of the people.”

Political clash

The dispute comes as the Liberal Democrats gather in Bournemouth for their annual party conference. Davey is reportedly planning to use his keynote speech to escalate his rhetoric against Musk. He has also pushed for a motion in Parliament to summon the CEO to face questions over remarks made at last weekend’s Unite the Kingdom rally in London.

At that event, organized by activist Tommy Robinson, Musk warned of “uncontrolled migration” and declared that “violence is coming.” These comments were later described by Davey as incitement. Musk responded by labeling the Lib Dem leader a “craven coward.” While some officials distanced themselves from Musk’s remarks, Conservative shadow chancellor Mel Stride highlighted that he did not believe the CEO had broken the law.

The post UK Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey accuses Elon Musk of “crimes” on X appeared first on TESLARATI.

www.teslarati.com
#Liberal #Democrat #leader #Davey #accuses #Elon #Musk #crimes