Lib Dems to call on Parliament to haul in Elon Musk for rally remarks

Parliament should haul in tech billionaire Elon Musk to answer for his “fight back” or “die” comments at a central London rally, Sir Ed Davey has said.

The Liberal Democrat leader has also called for an Ofcom investigation into X, the social media site owned by Mr Musk, and the businessman personally, for failing to uphold their duties under the Online Safety Act.

Sir Ed is also expected to continue his feud with the Tesla and X owner in his speech to the Lib Dems’ conference on Tuesday.

During the headline address, the Lib Dem leader will say Britain “must stand up to Elon Musk, and properly enforce our laws so he can’t get away with inflicting harm on our kids”.

Social media spat

Sir Ed and Mr Musk have engaged in a social media spat over the last week, following the billionaire’s appearance at the Unite the Kingdom rally held in central London.

The protest, led by far-right activist and convicted fraudster Tommy Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, saw Mr Musk appear in a video message.

The tech boss drew condemnation from Downing Street for telling demonstrators at the rally in London: “Whether you choose violence or not, violence is coming to you. You either fight back or you die.”

Sir Ed accused Mr Musk of inciting violence after the incident, with the businessman branding him a “craven coward” in return.

The Lib Dem leader then shared a meme image of SpongeBob SquarePants, parroting back the words to Mr Musk in mockery.

His party plans to table a motion as soon as Parliament returns, with the aim of summoning Mr Musk to appear before MPs to be held to account for his actions at the rally.

Publicly admonished

The little-used parliamentary power would demand Mr Musk appear at the threshold of the House of Commons, the so-called bar, to be publicly admonished.

The power has not been tested for decades, and was last used on a “stranger” – a non-MP – in 1957.

The Lib Dems are urging the Government and other opposition parties to support the move.

Sir Ed has also said Mr Musk and X should face investigation for breaching UK online safety laws for allowing a proliferation of child sexual exploitation, self-harm and grooming on the social media site.

In his speech to the party conference in Bournemouth on Tuesday, Sir Ed is expected to say that Mr Musk is “keen to meddle in our democracy” because of “his ego, power and wealth”.

He will also say: “He rails against the Online Safety Act, but not because he cares about free speech. Like so many on the far-right – or the far-left – Elon Musk doesn’t really believe in free speech. He just believes in free speech for people who agree with him.

“It’s because he wants to carry on running his social media platform without taking any responsibility for the terrible harm it is causing – especially to our children.”

Nigel Farage

After claiming Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is “not a patriot” on Saturday, Sir Ed is also expected to continue to criticise his political rival.

He will also say: “And Nigel Farage says we should give Musk what he wants: a Wild West on social media, that only benefits Musk and his ilk – while children suffer.

“I say no. The UK must stand up to Elon Musk, and properly enforce our laws so he can’t get away with inflicting harm on our kids.”

Mr Musk and Mr Farage have both been critical of the Online Safety Act, which is designed to protect children from harmful content online.

Critics suggest it runs the risk of stifling freedom of speech online.