At a time of civil unrest, the last thing Britain needs is Elon Musk

When Elon Musk bought Twitter two years ago, he jocularly styled himself “Tweeter-in-Chief”.

There was some hope, then – albeit mixed with trepidation – that with his vast wealth, legendary drive and proven technological instincts, he might be a force for good. It is fair to say that it has not turned out that way.

Instead of “Tweeter-in-Chief”, Mr Musk has now appointed himself “Troll-in-Chief” for the prime minister of the United Kingdom. Mr Musk, though well travelled in space, is not very familiar with the little island off Europe called Britain, and he’d be well advised to steer clear of the country’s political affairs at a time of national crisis.

Centi-billionaire he may be – indeed, he is the richest man on this planet – but that hasn’t endowed him with the knowledge or wisdom required to make his interventions in the UK’s affairs useful, welcome or accurate. Britain, he may be assured, is not sliding inevitably into “civil war”, no matter how often he claims it is.

Mr Musk might also like to learn a little more about how the UK’s brave unarmed police deal with civil disorder before traducing them for operating a “two-tier” approach to policing. Sir Keir Starmer has rightly been focusing on the safety of Muslim communities, because it is mosques – and the people inside them – that are under attack.

In fact, countless innocent people are being terrorised by baying mobs inflamed by the myths and lies Mr Musk permits, even encourages, to circulate on his antisocial media platform.

Sir Keir has spent much of his life defending communities of all kinds and upholding the rule of law. No one seriously doubts his sense of professionalism and dedication to the whole country, even if they sharply oppose his policies.

It is the kind of personal attack that should be beneath someone in Mr Musk’s position, but it seems that he can say whatever he likes, virtually free of accountability. It is a sad fact that anyone can now use X to incite racial hatred and foment a riot, both of which happen to be against the law.

Renamed X, much to the dismay of Twitter users, under Mr Musk the platform has turned from being a little lively and problematic at times into a toxic sewer harbouring vile racism, misogyny, homophobia and conspiracy theories. It is arguably the most formidable – and accessible – hate machine in modern history.

It is Mr Musk who allowed Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, commonly known as Tommy Robinson, back onto the platform to spread his corrosive propaganda. Even now, Mr Musk communes digitally with this individual, who seems hell-bent on directing civil disorder from a beach in Cyprus while dodging his latest arrest warrant.

Mr Musk likes to style himself a “free speech absolutist”, but is he really? As far as the British are concerned, free speech cannot be an absolute right to be exercised wantonly and destructively.

Communities do indeed need to be protected, their liberties defended, and people allowed to live and prosper in peace. Conspiracies – real ones – to burn down hotels with people in them are unlawful and heinous wherever they are first fomented, be it on Facebook, Telegram or X.

Keeping (after first restoring) the peace is the urgent mission the government is currently embarked upon, and it should be encouraged, even praised, for its efforts.

Mr Musk would be in a stronger position to lecture others about “protecting all communities” if he hadn’t sacked most of the Twitter moderators, relaxed the rules on race hate on the platform, and stood by as it turned into the mess it is now: an antisemitic network and a home for Holocaust denial; a place in which women, transgender people and ethnic minorities are routinely belittled and abused.

You don’t need to suffer from what he calls “the woke mind virus” to understand the harm X has the potential to inflict – indeed, is currently inflicting – on the world. He is, after all, donating millions to the election campaign of Donald Trump, something that looks like becoming another of Mr Musk’s less successful investments.

Somewhat appropriately, home secretary Yvette Cooper has accused Mr Musk’s social media organisation of putting “rocket boosters” under the far-right groups who are availing themselves of the “organisation, the attention and the misinformation” facilitated by X – all of which have, in turn, helped to spark the riots.

A period of silence from Mr Musk while Britain tries to repair its torn social fabric would be most welcome. A lengthy vacation on Mars would be ideal, for there are no riots there. Yet.