Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy announced that she and her department are ceasing to use Elon Musk's social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. Nandy stated in her final post on the platform that X "isn't healthy for our democracy or our communities and I don't want to support it." She described the platform as one that "originally designed for free speech and expression now favours abuse and misinformation over meaningful debate."
Nandy's departure from X follows a trend among UK government officials and politicians. Her department is the second government department to stop using X, after the attorney general's office. Several Members of Parliament (MPs) also left the platform earlier this year due to reports that its AI tool, Grok, was being used to create sexualized images, including those of children.
Attorney General Lord Hermer had previously defended his decision to ban his office from posting on X, telling MPs that the platform "constantly descends to racism and misogyny" and that his department "can do better." He stated that he could engage in serious, detailed, and respectful debate without being on a platform that frequently devolves into racism and misogyny.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has accused Musk of using his platform to "whip up division" in the UK. This comment came in the context of protests that occurred in Southampton following the release of bodycam footage showing police handcuffing 18-year-old Henry Nowak as he lay dying. Nowak's killer had claimed he was the victim of a racist attack, and the footage of Nowak's final moments prompted significant political reaction.
Nandy indicated that she will continue to use other social media platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. X has previously stated that any user found to be generating illegal content via its Grok AI tool will face consequences similar to those for uploading illegal content.