Friends like these

One of the stranger characteristics of the populist oligarchy mobilising around Donald Trump's new administration is the interest taken in the domestic politics of the UK.

- Andrew Anthony

Barely a day has passed so far this year without Elon Musk making some hysterical declaration about one or other British politician. “Starmer must go,” he announced on X. “He is a national embarrassment.”

The cause of the embarrassment, according to the world’s richest man, was Keir Starmer’s handling of so-called Asian grooming gangs when he was director of public prosecutions. The gangs, made up largely of Pakistani-heritage men in the north of England, have returned to the headlines in recent weeks as various politicians, vying for Musk’s support, have called for a national inquiry.

When stories of large-scale sexual exploitation of young girls in towns like Rotherham and Rochdale first began circulating, there was a reluctance among the police and other authorities to confront these terrible crimes, due to an anxiety about appearing racist.