Musk's criticism of disorder response 'dangerous'

Sir Keir Starmer said many communities were anxious and needed reassurance

The prime minister has said Elon Musk's criticism of the policing at a disturbance in Birmingham this week was "dangerous".

The owner of X (formerly Twitter) claimed the force was guilty of "two-tier policing".

Musk reacted to a video showing crowds of mainly Muslim men outside a Yardley pub where disorder took place on Monday, and tagged Sir Keir Starmer in a post questioning why all communities "weren't protected" in Britain.

On a visit to Solihull on Thursday, the prime minister said talk of two-tier policing was wrong and dangerous, because it exposed police to "more danger".

Sir Keir was in the town to reassure community leaders in the wake of recent unrest and protests.

His visit came after police were called at the weekend to disperse a large gathering, involving two groups at The Hub, a mosque on Hermitage Road.

That gathering followed an anti-immigration protest in Solihull.

West Midlands Police has said two-tier policing does not exist in the region. The force stated it would "police without fear or favour".

Asked by the BBC if he had any thoughts over comments by Musk, the prime minister said "we should be thanking our police for what they're doing".

"They've got a most difficult task with lots of areas of disorder that they have been dealing with," Sir Keir said.

"Talk of two-tier policing is wrong, it's not true and it's dangerous, because it exposes the police to even more danger than they're already exposed to," he added.

Sir Keir Starmer said it was important there was "no let-up" in efforts to prevent further riots

Sir Keir said the UK did not see the disorder that many feared on Wednesday night, because "we had police deployed, in numbers, in the right places".

He said that prison sentences handed down to those involved in violent disorder sent a "powerful message" that the criminal justice system is working speedily.

He also said that the work "being done jointly to reassure our communities" is becoming more effective.

Referencing his visit to Solihull, Sir Keir said it was important to be able to give reassurance to communities, "many of whom, I have been talking to some this morning, are very anxious about the situation".

Simon Foster, West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), said the prime minister's visit "shows just how seriously" the government was treating recent disorder and violence.

The Labour PCC said he had raised concerns during the meeting with Sir Keir about how quickly hate and misinformation can spread on social media.

"I made my message very clear that we must not allow social media companies to get away with enabling hateful online content that can do so much harm and damage."