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Starmer responds after Musk tells people to avoid UK following summit snub

27 Sep 2024 4 minute read
Elon Musk. Photo Kirsty Wigglesworth/PA Wire

Sir Keir Starmer has responded to Elon Musk after the tech tycoon said people should not go to the UK.

The Tesla and SpaceX boss lashed out at the UK after it was reported he had not been invited to a major investment summit because of his social media posts during the summer riots.

Mr Musk said: “I don’t think anyone should go to the UK when they’re releasing convicted paedophiles in order to imprison people for social media posts.”

‘Stark contrast’

Sir Keir, who held a gathering for US business chiefs set to attend the summit while he was in New York, told reporters that Mr Musk’s views were in “stark contrast” to those of the executives he had met.

He said the business chiefs described the breakfast event they had with him during his New York visit as “the best of the meetings they’ve had” during the UN General Assembly which sees political leaders jet in from around the world.

“There’s a really strong window of opportunity now with the UK, given the changes we’ve brought about, our number one mission on economic growth, and to talk them through the wealth fund, the industrial strategy, what we’re doing in terms of planning, grids, etc,” Sir Keir said.

“So I’m listening good and hard to what they have to say, because they will be attending the summit, and many of them are already investing in the UK.

“On Tesla. Obviously, I encourage investment from anywhere, and so I don’t want to be misunderstood on this. So good investment into the UK is what I’m very, very keen to promote.”

It is understood SpaceX has been invited to send a representative to the summit in October.

False claims

Mr Musk’s absence from the summit follows his promotion of false claims in relation to the disorder in the summer.

After three children were killed in a stabbing attack in Southport and violence erupted across the UK, X owner Mr Musk posted on his platform suggesting that a civil war in the UK was “inevitable” and attacking the Prime Minister.

His claim about the UK releasing prisoners came after 1,700 inmates were released early from their sentences in the first phase of the Government’s plan to tackle overcrowding. Sex offenders are excluded from the policy.

Sir Keir’s push for overseas investment is part of his “mission” to kickstart economic growth.

Private sector

Despite the Government’s plan to nationalise the railways and the launch of publicly owned Great British Energy, Sir Keir said: “By and large, I think that business is best run by those in the private sector.

“So the ideal model, as far as I’m concerned, is the government of the day sets the strategic agenda, if you like, the five missions in my particular case. That is the right thing to do for a democratic, elected government.

“We then partner with business, and we’re making a big ask of business, which is ‘come alongside us and deliver our missions with us’, in this case, economic growth, and the government is your partner in that.

“And that means that we ensure that the conditions are good for investment and good for business. Hence, the work we do planning, what we’re doing on the grid. What we’re doing with the National Wealth Fund.

“GB Energy is intended to be a catalyst, as well as an energy company, to ensure that we can take the bumps out of the road for those that want to get into our mission on net zero.

“I think the railways do need to come into public ownership. I think anybody who’s travelled on the train recently would give that a big thumbs up, as the British public do. I think GB energy needs to be a publicly owned entity as we harvest the opportunities.

“But as a general proposition, I think businesses are best run by businesses.”


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Les Cargot
Les Cargot
10 hours ago

Do we really want people who hang on Musk’s every word visiting the UK? I think not.

Jeff
Jeff
2 hours ago

UK meddling is a drop in the ocean, he is not a safe platform owner, allows hate. No seat at any table for him, ever. There are enough news outlets in the US showing him up and he is so far up trump at the moment. Just do a Brazil on him. More countries that do that the better.

Old Curmudgeon
Old Curmudgeon
1 hour ago

What a spoiled Brat this man is. Not being a user of X myself I can’t understand why people don’t just boycott his companies and leave him to sulk on his bedroom.

Why vote
Why vote
1 hour ago

He met with business chiefs at a breakfast event, hope he is aware that they are circling their pray to make money, what can they get out of Starmer not what they can invest in England and they will suck him dry, man’s a fool. Who really cares about Musk? He makes a lot of noise about electric cars, solar power, and launching rockets in to space to go to Mars. Go then, bye bye.

Jeff
Jeff
19 minutes ago
Reply to  Why vote

Who cares about musk? Ask the victims of the race riots, the residents of Springfield. All the people that are now having the option to block abusers removed, the pile ons he encourages because of his status especially when he is so far up trump, and trump and vance really are piling the lies and hate out there.

Linda Jones
Linda Jones
6 minutes ago

Sounds as if Starmer is on a mission in the US to sell off even more of the UK’s assets and resources to the highest bidder. No plan for the development of home grown development and investment?

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