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Tech billionaire Elon Musk links Keir Starmer to Pakistani ‘rape gangs
Tech billionaire Elon Musk has lashed out at UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer over his handling of a historic child abuse by gangs of Pakistani-origin men in Oldham. Musk claimed that Starmer failed to bring “rape gangs” to justice when he was the director of public prosecutions over a decade ago.
The UK government on Friday hit back at Musk, saying he was “misjudged and certainly misinformed”. It, however, said the Starmer government was ready to work with the billionaire in tackling the issue.
Responding to Musk’s criticism, UK Health Secretary Wes Streeting said that the observations of Musk were “misjudged and certainly misinformed”.
“Some of the criticisms that Elon Musk has made, I think, are misjudged and certainly misinformed,” Streeting told reporters on being asked about the attacks.
The issue was thrown into the spotlight when it emerged that Home Office Minister Jess Phillips rejected Oldham Council’s call for a government-led inquiry into historical child sexual exploitation and asked the council to lead the review instead.
The Conservatives are also calling for a national inquiry into the issue. Tory leader Kemi Badenoch wrote on X that “trials have taken place all over the country in recent years but no one in authority has joined the dots”. “2025 must be the year that the victims start to get justice,” Badenoch said.
The sexual exploitation of young girls by grooming gangs has been a contentious issue raised by several far-right campaigners over the years.
WHAT IS THE GROOMING GANG SCANDAL?
An inquiry into these grooming gangs in Rotherham found 1,400 children had been sexually abused over 16 years, predominantly by British Pakistani men.
Inquiries covering other parts of northern England also highlighted similar concerns, in many cases involving men of South Asian heritage.
The UK government has said it is committed to implementing the recommendations of Professor Alexis Jay’s report from a 2022 national inquiry into child sexual abuse.
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sex Abuse (IICSA) has made 20 recommendations and Professor Jay recently noted, “It doesn’t need more consultation. It does not need more research or discussion. It just needs to be done.”