The United Kingdom is looking to fend off Tesla CEO Elon Musk after he showed his political mettle in the United States and Germany.
Musk wielded a decisive hand in the U.S. 2024 election, throwing his fortune behind President-elect Donald Trump. He has since begun commenting more on international politics, voicing his support for the Alternative fur Deutschland in Germany and Reform U.K. in the U.K. The Labour government, fearful that Musk could have a decisive effect, is eyeing ways to neuter his influence.
The U.K. government has floated the idea of taking further measures to prevent foreign figures from making outsize political donations, the Wall Street Journal reported.
“We have no immediate plans to do, but we do have a manifesto commitment to look more broadly at our elections regime in the country, from things like votes at 16, which we are committed to, but also to make sure that our electoral system has got that integrity and is robust from many of the new issues that face undermining our democracy and our elections,” Commons leader Lucy Powell told Sky News.
“But just to be clear, foreign donations to U.K.-based political parties is prohibited under current law, so that’s something that already exists,” she added.
Powell later said the Labour government was looking to combat “many of the issues that are undermining our democracy at the moment — like mis- and disinformation, foreign state actions and so on.”
The alarm was raised by a meeting between Reform U.K. Party head Nigel Farage and Musk at Mar-a-Lago last week, during which they discussed political strategy. In a joint statement, Farage and the party’s treasurer Nick Candy said they had “learnt a great deal about the Trump ground game” and would have “ongoing discussions” with Musk in other sectors.
“We only have one more chance left to save the West, and we can do great things together. Our thanks also to President Trump for allowing us to use Mar-a-Lago for this historic meeting. The special relationship is alive and well,” it added, referring to the close relationship between the U.S. and U.K.
Musk has gone after the left-wing Labour government with increasing ferocity in recent weeks, comparing it with the Soviet Union and Prime Minister Keir Starmer with Stalin, as well as deriding the U.K. as a “totalitarian police state.”
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Musk, a South African native, has largely been absent from his home country’s politics, turning his attention internationally. Last week, he gave the AfD a major boost by declaring it the only viable path forward for Germany, incurring the wrath of the German government.
His support garnered the controversial party renewed international attention, as well as right-wing sympathies.
