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The Tesla boss has launched a series of baseless attacks on the Labour government over grooming gangs
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Sir Keir Starmer is set to face his first PMQs of the year amid a row with billionaire Elon Musk over the grooming gangs, as the Tories seek to force a Commons vote on calls for a new national inquiry.
The Tesla boss has launched a series of baseless attacks on the Labour government over grooming gangs, prompting safeguarding minister Jess Phillips to voice fears for her safety after he unleashed a torrent of abuse against her.
Following Mr Musk’s calls for a grooming gangs inquiry, Kemi Badenoch is seeking to force an amendment to Labour’s children’s safety bill to that effect, which the education secretary warned would “kill it stone dead”, jeopardising urgent measures to protect vulnerable youngsters.
Professor Alexis Jay, who chaired the Independent Inquiry into Child Sex Abuse (IICSA), has warned that those “whipping up” the current furore do not have the interests of victims at heart, and should prioritise implementing measures she recommended as opposed to demanding a new inquiry.
Our political correspondent Archie Mitchell has more details on the row over Kemi Badenoch’s bid to seek an amendment to Labour’s child safety bill in order to call for a new national inquiry into grooming gangs.
Urging the Conservatives to “put up or shut up” and back Labour’s bill ahead of today’s vote, education secretary Bridget Phillipson warned the Tory amendment would “kill it stone dead”, jeopardising urgent measures to protect vulnerable youngsters.
The amendment has almost zero chance of passing, but due to parliamentary process, if voted for it would stop the overall bill in its tracks and prevent it being brought back before the Commons in the current parliamentary session.
It includes measures that will see parents no longer have an automatic right to take their children out of school for home education if the young person is subject to a child protection investigation or suspected of being at risk of significant harm.
The education secretary warned that supporting symbolic Tory calls for a grooming gangs inquiry will kill a children’s safety bill ‘stone dead’
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson has warned that the Tories should “put up or shut up” ahead of a Commons vote later today which she fears could hijack legislation aimed at bolstering children’s safety.
In a debate this afternoon, the Conservatives will bring forward an amendment to the government’s Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which is expected to call for ministers to establish a “national statutory inquiry into historical child sexual exploitation, focused on grooming gangs”.
Describing the bill as the “single biggest piece of child protection legislation in a generation”, Ms Phillipson said it would ensure coordination across agencies” to ensure that we know where children are in order to “make sure that our children are protected”.
The education secretary told Sky News: “The Conservatives can back this or, as they’re proposing, can kill stone dead this key landmark legislation. They’ve spent the last week or so touring studios like this telling your viewers that they care about keeping children safe.
“Well, they should put up or shut up. Vote for this legislation, and do precisely that. Or is it all about grabbing a cheap headline and political opportunism?”
Elon Musk’s father has warned that Nigel Farage is “not strong enough to be the leader that” Britain needs, after his son called for Reform UK to replace him as party leader.
Asked whether he had talked to his son about the breakdown of his relationship with Mr Farage, Errol Musk told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “Yes … Initially I was the first one to say that I think Farage is certainly not – I don’t think he’s a bad person – he’s not strong enough to be the leader that you need at the moment.
“You need a really strong leader – somebody who’s prepared to ultimately be crucified, not lose the odd cigarette or something because of the pressure on him. You need someone who’s really prepared to put themselves on the line. You’re heading in the wrong direction in your country.
“So initially I just said he’s not a strong enough person, then Elon followed it up by saying that he’s just got to go. And then I was asked and I said, ‘look it is England, after all, we are trying to be fair people’ … and so we would perhaps give him a second chance and see what he can do.”
The Conservatives will seek to garner support for a new nationwide child grooming investigation with a symbolic vote in the Commons later today, amid an ongoing spat between ministers and billionaire Elon Musk.
Sir Keir Starmer’s government has faced a slew of attacks from the X and Tesla owner in recent days, after Home Office minister Jess Phillips declined a request for a nationally led inquiry in Oldham in favour of a council-led investigation.
Ms Phillips said she faced an increased risk to her safety since Mr Musk called her a “rape genocide apologist”, and the prime minister has signalled the businessman crossed a line with his criticism and was spreading misinformation.
The Tories have joined calls by Mr Musk for a new UK-wide inquiry into child sexual abuse, despite a wide-ranging independent probe having concluded its work in 2022.
On Wednesday, Kemi Badenoch’s party will bring forward an amendment to the government’s Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill which is expected to call for ministers to establish a “national statutory inquiry into historical child sexual exploitation, focused on grooming gangs”.
Home Office minister Jess Phillips has meanwhile said she faced increased risk to her safety since Elon Musk called her a ‘rape genocide apologist’.
In his latest piece for Independent Voices, Jon Sopel writes:
You know that moment when your child gets home from school and you’re aware something bad has happened? Then, it all comes out: the person your child thought was his new best mate isn’t that nice after all. And he’s worried that his other longstanding friend might side with him, because the other two seem really tight. And you listen attentively, if slightly bewildered, to learn the spat is all the fault of that horrid kid in the class, Tommy.
Well, in this story it’s Nigel Farage who’s fallen out with the school’s Mr Flash – Elon Musk… all because Nige hasn’t shown loyalty to another kid, Tommy (Robinson, of course), who has been expelled. And Farage is worried that his longstanding best friend, Donald Trump, might side with Elon because they seem inseparable – always hanging around the playground together, sniggering at the back of the classroom, Elon letting Don copy his algebra homework.
If it wasn’t so consequential for British politics, it might be easy just to play it for laughs.
But it does matter. Having played an outsized role in the US presidential election in November – and few can doubt Musk’s significance, both in terms of financial muscle and his alleged recalibration of the X algorithm to promote and amplify Trump’s messages – it looks like the world’s richest man is turning to the UK as his next political playground.
Until now, the Reform leader has been cheering Elon on for what he’s said about the state of British politics, assiduously courting him (and his cheque book). But it all seems to have gone sour, writes Jon Sopel
The government’s plan for all state schools – academies and those run by councils – to follow the same pay and conditions framework is “educational vandalism”, the shadow education secretary has warned.
Laura Trott accused Labour of being set on “tearing up everything that has driven up school standards” through its Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.
The Bill – which is due to have its second reading in Parliament on Wednesday – has prompted fears that academies will lose freedoms which can help to recruit teachers and improve pupil outcomes in challenging areas.
Academies – which are independent of local authorities – currently have the freedom to set their own pay and conditions for staff, and some academies exceed the national pay scales for teachers. But under the new legislation, all teachers will be part of the same core pay and conditions framework whether they work in a local authority-run school or an academy.
Nigel Farage has said he will not take legal action against Kemi Badenoch over her claim Reform UK had faked its membership numbers.
He told LBC: “I’m not going to sue over it because, as I said, I do believe in free speech. I was offended by it, I asked for an apology and one wasn’t given so I’m going to go to her constituency on the 31st of this month.
“I’m going to hold a big event for all the Reform members living in her constituency, there are 417 of them when I last checked, paid-up members, bet it’s more than she’s got. There’s another 800 supporters living in the constituency.
“And I’m going to do a big joint photo, Kemi, and say ‘these are all our fake members and we are coming for you at the next election’.”
Sir Keir Starmer has begun this year in an explosive row with tech billionaire Elon Musk, which broke out after the Tesla boss criticised the government for rejecting a national inquiry into the grooming gangs scandal.
Our political correspondent Millie Cooke takes a look at their past interactions here:
Sir Keir Starmer’s latest spat with Elon Musk has its roots in tensions that began months ago
There is still not a strong enough determination to get to the bottom of grooming scandals, a whistleblower has said.
Maggie Oliver, a former detective who resigned from Greater Manchester Police in 2012, believes victims and survivors would have to be “at the centre” of any inquiry.
She told Times Radio: “The question has to be, who would lead it? What would it achieve? Victims and survivors have to be at the centre of this.”
She added: “The 20 recommendations of the national abuse inquiry have still not been implemented – that’s the start.
“Maybe gather together all the evidence we already have from the local inquiries in Rochdale, in Rotherham, in Manchester, and that could be the start of the process, add victims’ voices to that, and have people who are truly knowledgeable analysing it. Well, maybe that’s the way forward.”
The victims minister was unable to provide a timeline for implementing the recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, saying the Government was working “quickly”.
Alex Davies-Jones told Times Radio: “I can’t give you a timeline but what I can tell you is we are working very, very quickly.
“A lot of these recommendations can be implemented quickly. As you heard from the Home Secretary yesterday, we’ve already begun that work and some of those new offences that have been announced will be in our Crime and Policing Bill brought in later this year.”
Adding that the Government would provide “more information soon”, she said: “I want to do this as quickly as possible. It’s very complicated, this is not a quick fix overnight.”
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