PM rows with Musk amid calls for national grooming inquiry

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Mr Musk continued his attacks on Sir Keir following his speech, describing him as “utterly despicable” and “insane” and accusing the Prime Minister of refusing demands for a national inquiry because it would show he was “deeply complicit in the mass rapes in exchange for votes”. The row prompted by Mr Musk’s comments has Sir Keir accused the Tories of “amplifying what the far-right is saying” and “jumping on the bandwagon” to gain attention, saying Mrs Badenoch had failed to implement the recommendations of Professor Alexis Jay’s 2022 report on child sexual abuse. That such a huge scandal could occur should prompt soul-searching not ranting that those of us who care about it are ‘the far-right’ Kemi Badenoch, Conservative Party leader Mrs Badenoch said Sir Keir was “applying Labour smear tactics from 20 years ago” and was “a man of the past with no answers for today’s problems, let alone tomorrow’s”. She added: “That such a huge scandal could occur should prompt soul-searching not ranting that those of us who care about it are ‘the far-right’.” Mr Jenrick said the Prime Minister had “learned nothing” from a scandal in which “weak and cowardly local councillors and officials suppressed proper scrutiny”, adding: “Victims now demand a national inquiry.” Sir Keir’s official spokesman acknowledged not all those calling for a new inquiry were aligned with the far-right, but continued to hit out at “certain politicians” who “had a chance to do something about this when they were in government”.