Reform UK party leader says comments by billionaire are free speech

Yesterday, in his lengthy attack on Elon Musk and the Conservative party for what they have said about the child abuse scandal, Keir Starmer focused on one point in particular: the Conservative party’s refusal to condemn Musk for saying that Jess Phillips, the safeguarding minister, was a “rape genocide apologist”. Musk’s tweet saying this has now had almost 43m views and many MPs believe a comment this extreme could amount to an incitement to violence. Starmer said that a line had been crossed, and that decent politicians would condemn this unequivocally.

In his LBC phone-in Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, was asked if he would condemn Musk for what he said. He refused, replying:

If he was inciting violence, then that would be going beyond the line at which free speech is acceptable.

It’s very, very strong language, and it offends many, but then free speech should be able to offend many.

Of course. That’s what free speech is. You should be allowed, I should be allowed, to say things that others find offensive.

That perhaps explains some of the strong language [from Musk]. You may find it offensive. I don’t think it goes beyond the line.

We, at this current stage, will abstain from this budget, because this budget is going to pass anyway. It has the votes of another political party, at least one of the opposition political parties, so we are not going to vote against this budget.

If they actually put the ending of the two-child benefit cap into this budget and lift it on the first of April, we will vote for the budget.