- Elon Musk said Reform UK’s Nigel Farage “doesn’t have what it takes” to be the party’s leader.
- It comes after Farage disagreed with Musk’s support for jailed far-right activist Tommy Robinson.
- Musk’s comments came just hours after Farage called the Tesla CEO a “friend” in an interview.
Elon Musk appears to have turned on Reform UK’s Nigel Farage, the leader of the country’s right-wing party.
“The Reform Party needs a new leader. Farage doesn’t have what it takes,” Musk wrote on X on Sunday.
Musk has recently supported Reform UK as an alternative to the ruling Labour Party, primarily for its anti-immigration stance. Farage has welcomed that support and the two appeared to be forging a strong relationship. Farage recently visited Musk in the United States. And Musk was rumored to be lining up donations for Reform UK.
But things took a turn after Musk called for the release of Tommy Robinson, a jailed far-right anti-immigration activist. Speaking at a Reform UK event earlier this week, Farage said Robinson was “not what we need,” The Telegraph reported.
“There are people in Britain who think that Robinson is a political prisoner. That’s the narrative that he’s pushed out. That’s how he earns his living but it isn’t quite true,” he said.
On Sunday, Farage responded to Musk, calling the billionaire a “remarkable individual” but saying that he disagreed with his view on Robinson.
“Well, this is a surprise! Elon is a remarkable individual but on this I am afraid I disagree,” he wrote. “My view remains that Tommy Robinson is not right for Reform and I never sell out my principles.”
Robinson is a controversial far-right figure in the UK who was sentenced to 18 months in prison in October for contempt of court. Musk has repeatedly called for Robinson’s release.
Robinson is something of a third rail in the UK. Farage, who does not shy away from controversy, accused the activist during far-right, anti-immigration riots in the UK over the summer of trying to “stir up hatred.”
“As for the Tommy Robinsons and those that genuinely do stir up hatred, well, I’ve never had anything to do with them,” Farage said in a video he posted at the time.
Hours before Musk’s latest comments, the Reform UK leader described the tech mogul as a “friend” in an interview on the BBC.
Farage said the fact that Musk “supports me politically and supports Reform doesn’t mean I have to agree with every single statement he makes on X.”
Business Insider has contacted Reform UK for comment.
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