Sir Ed Davey brands Elon Musk a criminal and calls for his arrest for 'allowing online harm to children'

Sir Ed Davey has branded Elon Musk a transgression and called for him to beryllium prosecuted for "allowing online harm to children" connected his societal media level X.

The Lib Dem person told Sky News' Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips the billionaire proprietor of X, formerly Twitter, is "inciting violence" and his societal media level is actively failing to support children.

Sir Ed, speaking from the Lib Dem league successful Bournemouth, said Mr Musk could beryllium prosecuted nether the Online Safety Act, nether which societal media companies person a ineligible work to support children from harmful contented and their directors are liable for transgression prosecution for breaching it.

Asked if helium is calling Mr Musk a criminal, Sir Ed did not miss a bushed arsenic helium said: "Yes.

"Not conscionable due to the fact that of the atrocious things he's done successful inciting violence, and, for example, helium says a civilian warfare successful our state is inevitable, that our democratically elected authorities should beryllium overthrown.

"They were atrocious enough. But connected his platform, they're examples of adverse, pushing radical connected self-harm, connected grooming, adjacent selling videos showing paedophile acts, of kid enactment maltreatment acts and I deliberation helium should beryllium held to relationship for them, him personally and his business.

"Ofcom present has the powers nether the Online Safety Act."

He said if Mr Musk comes to the UK, helium should beryllium arrested.

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Mr Musk was accused of inciting unit during a march organised by Tommy Robinson successful London past week.

He told the protestation via video link: "This is simply a connection to the tenable centre, the radical who ordinarily wouldn't get progressive successful politics, who conscionable privation to unrecorded their lives. They don't privation that, they're quiet, they conscionable spell astir their business.

"My connection is to them: if this continues, that unit is going to travel to you, you volition person nary choice. You're successful a cardinal concern here.

"Whether you take unit oregon not, unit is coming to you. You either combat backmost oregon you die, that's the truth, I think."

Sir Ed said it is "shocking" that Mr Musk removed immoderate of X's kid information teams erstwhile helium took implicit Twitter successful 2022 and accused him of conscionable being "interested successful his slope account".

"I'm funny successful the information of our children, and it is rather incorrect that his concern puts connected these adverts," said the Lib Dem leader.

"It's disgusting and I anticipation everybody volition hold with maine and the Liberal Democrats that we should instrumentality truly beardown enactment against him."

After Mr Musk acquired Twitter, galore of its kid information unit were laid disconnected oregon resigned, and the platform's spot and information assembly was disbanded.

Child extortion experts person accused Mr Musk of starring a "race to the bottommost connected safety".

Ofcom, the UK's autarkic media regulator, which has the powerfulness to prosecute directors of societal media platforms nether the Online Safety Act, has launched an probe into X's handling of kid intersexual maltreatment content.

This is not the archetypal clip Sir Ed has deed retired astatine the world's richest man, arsenic helium called for the US ambassador to beryllium summoned successful February "to inquire wherefore an incoming US authoritative is suggesting the UK authorities should beryllium overthrown".

Mr Musk reacted by calling Sir Ed a "snivelling cretin".

Sir Ed is expected to reiterate his telephone for Mr Musk's apprehension astatine his league code connected Tuesday.

He volition impeach Mr Musk of being motivated by "his ain ego, powerfulness and wealth, alternatively than the rights and freedoms of the British people".

The Lib Dems volition besides array a parliamentary question summoning Mr Musk to the House of Commons "to beryllium reprimanded for his actions".

Sky News has approached X and Elon Musk for comment, but arsenic of work has received nary response.

X maintains it has "zero tolerance for kid intersexual maltreatment material" and claims tackling those who exploit children is simply a "top priority".