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Louise Thomas
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Labour MPs have claimed they are quitting or “stepping back” from Twitter/X as owner Elon Musk is accused of turning it into a “megaphone for far-right fringe groups”.
Two MPs have reportedly told colleagues they are leaving X altogether, with Noah Law – MP for St Austell and Newquay – already having disabled his account. Others have said they are scaling back their use though they are still posting.
Labour veteran Diane Abbott told The Independent she is “limiting” her use of the platform, explaining: “The changes in X under Musk have made it worse. Only a handful of MPs would say it is better and they would mostly be Reform members.” Her last post was on Monday, about an Israeli airstrike, after a gap of four days.
Over the weekend, home office minister Jess Phillips said she is “sort of done” with the social media site, saying it has become a “bit despotic” and is “a place of misery now”.
While the MP for Birmingham Yardley, who still has an active profile, said it would be “too dramatic” to encourage people to quit the platform, she added: “Fundamentally for me now I think that I am sort of done with it, I don’t wish to fish in that particular pond any more.”
Ms Phillips last posted on Monday and Sunday, with a gap of six days before that.
Speaking at the Edinburgh Fringe festival, the MP said: “I used to be massively addicted to Twitter, I have got a very addictive personality, I was massively addicted to it.
“The only power we now have over what is becoming a bit despotic is that we opt out of it, you vote with your feet in this instance rather than pen and paper.
“Personally for me, I don’t think it is a space where there is any fun to be had any more. I don’t think that it is a place of light, I think it is only a place of misery now.”
Other MPs say they have begun looking at other options, including Threads and Bluesky.
Labour MP for Makerfield Josh Simons told The Guardian he is looking at using alternative platform Bluesky, explaining: “What matters about Musk is not only what he said, but how he changed X’s algorithms. He’s turned X into a megaphone for foreign adversaries and far-right fringe groups seeking to corrupt our public sphere. Nobody should have that power.”
Lewis Atkinson, the Labour MP for Sunderland Central, added: “I’ve noticed in recent weeks some people moving away from X because of their experiences there, so I’ve expanded where I’m posting to include some X alternatives – Threads and BlueSky.
“I’ve been pleased to find others I know there, including other Labour MPs; by my count 28 now using Threads. Using multiple platforms gives constituents and journalists a choice of what they use. I don’t plan to quit X, but I don’t see why it (or any platform) should have a monopoly on politicians posting.”
A new survey from Savanta showed that 29 per cent of X users believe that the changes under Musk have made the platform worse and are considering leaving the social media site. Some 35 per cent said Musk, who took over the platform in October 2022, has made the site worse but were not considering leaving, with just 26 per cent saying he had made the platform better – driven in part by Reform UK voters, which made up 49 per cent of those.
The tech billionaire found himself in a row with Downing Street last week, with Sir Keir Starmer saying there was “no justification” for Musk’s claim that “civil war is inevitable” in Britain. Justice secretary Heidi Alexander described his remarks as both “deeply irresponsible” and “unconscionable”.
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