Jess Phillips has ‘security bolstered and told not to go out alone’ after Elon Musk attacks

Jess Phillips has reportedly had her security bolstered after Elon Musk launched into a furious social media tirade against the home office minister over the government’s decision to reject a national inquiry into the grooming gangs scandal.

She is also said to have had close protection officers assigned to her and has been advised not to go out in public alone, sources told The Times.

The revelation comes just hours after Ms Phillips admitted she fears for her safety as a result of the barrage of abuse she has received on social media.

She told ITV: “Of course I worry about my safety. Of course, and you have to, you know, anyone who has worked in the fields of violence against women and girls. Risk is dynamic and I have to take account of the risks in my life and this is one of them currently.”

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“The things that he’s saying are so ridiculous as to initially make me just go, what? But then you wake up with the realisation that that’s millions of people that he has said that to and you feel immediately like this is going to turn my world upside down and I have to try and limit for how long that is the case”, Ms Phillips added.

Mr Musk criticised the government’s handling of the grooming gangs scandal - including attacking Sir Keir Starmer for his role as director of public prosecutions - and shared a flurry of posts accusing Ms Phillips of being a “rape genocide apologist” who “deserves to be in prison”.

The last Tory government also rejected a request from Oldham council for a national inquiry.

Earlier this week, it emerged that a man has been charged with sending malicious communications to Ms Phillips just days after criticism from Mr Musk.

Sir Keir made an impassioned defence of his safeguarding minister, warning that those “whipping up intimidation and threats of violence” on social media have crossed a line.

“Those that are spreading lies and misinformation as far as wide as possible are not interested in victims, they’re interested in themselves,” Sir Keir said on Monday.

“Those attacking Jess Phillips, who I’m proud to call a colleague and a friend, are not protecting victims. Jess Phillips has done a thousand times more than they’ve even dreamt about when it comes to protecting victims of sexual abuse throughout her entire career.

“We’ve seen this play out many times whipping up intimidation and threats of violence, hoping that the media will amplify it.

“When the poison of the far right leads to serious threats, to Jess Phillips and others, that in my book, means a line has been crossed. I enjoy the cut and thrust of politics. The robust debate that we must have. But that’s got to be based on facts and truth. Not on lies.”

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While the government has repeatedly said a national inquiry is not necessary, Ms Phillips on Wednesday said “nothing is off the table” when dealing with the grooming gangs scandal.

She told the Electoral Dysfunction podcast: “If the victims come forward to me in this victims panel and they say, ‘actually, we think there needs to be a national inquiry into this’, I’ll listen to them.”

But speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions, Sir Keir said a new inquiry “will delay things to 2031”, pointing out that recommendations from a seven-year investigation which reported in 2022 had not yet been implemented.

“We already know what the major flaws are and my argument is we should get on with that action”, he said.

The Tories have tabled an amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill demanding a new national inquiry into gangs, but if MPs backed Mrs Badenoch’s call it would prevent the legislation making progress.

The Met Police declined to comment when approached by The Independent.