Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has announced she and her department are leaving Elon Musk's X platform, declaring in what appeared to be her final post that the site “isn't healthy for our democracy or our communities and I don't want to support it.”
“A platform originally designed for free speech and expression now favours abuse and misinformation over meaningful debate,” she wrote, prompting an immediate rebuke from Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch. “DCMS is supposed to counter and deal with misinformation, not run away because it's all too much,” Badenoch responded on X.
“Lisa Nandy quits X, calling it 'not healthy for democracy'; second government department to leave Musk's platform.”
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport becomes the second government department to abandon the platform, following the attorney general's office. Attorney General Lord Hermer defended his own decision last month, telling MPs that X “constantly descends to racism and misogyny” and that his department “can do better.” He added: “For the work that I can do, I can engage with people in serious debate, detailed debate, respectful debate, without being on a platform that constantly descends to racism and misogyny.”
Downing Street indicated it would continue using X, with a spokeswoman saying it kept its use of social media “under review” and that individual ministers and departments could decide for themselves.
The move comes against a backdrop of heightened tension between the government and Musk. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has accused the billionaire of using his platform to “whip up division” in the UK following the murder of student Henry Nowak last month. Violent protests erupted in Southampton after the release of bodycam footage showing police handcuffing 18‑year‑old Nowak as he lay dying. His killer, Vickrum Digwa, had claimed he was the victim of a racist attack. Musk criticised the police treatment of the teenager.
Several MPs, including Liberal Democrat Layla Moran and Vikki Slade, and Labour's Darren Paffey, left X earlier this year after reports that its Grok AI tool was being used to create sexualised images, including of children. X has previously said: “Anyone using or prompting Grok to make illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content.”
Nandy said she would continue to use Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.