Elon Musk is “an opponent of free speech” and should be “held to account”, Sir Ed Davey has said, as the row between the billionaire and British politicians continued.
Speaking during a visit to Cambridgeshire on Friday, the Liberal Democrat leader called for greater regulation of social media algorithms, pointing to the impact of posts on Mr Musk’s platform X on the disorder seen in parts of the UK last summer.
Asked about the free speech implications of such regulation, Sir Ed told the PA news agency: “The Liberal Democrats champion free speech.
“But when the richest man in the world owns a platform that he distorts to promote his views and prevents other people speaking, he isn’t a champion of free speech, he is an opponent of free speech.”
Mr Musk has been accused of manipulating X’s algorithm to promote his own posts, which often engage with far-right content, for instance supporting jailed activist Tommy Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, or the German Alternative fur Deutschland party.
Sir Ed also attacked the Tesla chief executive over a post on X in which Mr Musk asked whether America should “liberate” the UK from its “tyrannical government”.
Sir Ed told PA: “He has said that America should replace our Government. I’m afraid it’s British people at the ballot box that decide that, not the richest man in the world, who happens to be close to the next president of the United States and who has this social media platform.
“I think these powerful people need to be held to account.”
Sir Ed has previously called for the US ambassador to be summoned over Mr Musk’s repeated attacks on British politicians, leading the billionaire to describe him as a “snivelling cretin”.
