LONDON — Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain on Monday fired back at Elon Musk after days of inflammatory social media posts by Musk, the billionaire owner of the social platform X, indirectly accusing him and others of “spreading lies and misinformation” about victims of child sex abuse gangs.

“Those who are spreading lies and misinformation, as far and as wide as possible, are not interested in victims,” Starmer told reporters at an event south of London dedicated to repairing the National Health Service. “They’re interested in themselves.”

Starmer also defended himself against accusations by Musk that he did not act quickly enough against gangs that abused and exploited young girls, when he was head of public prosecutions.

Musk has repeatedly asserted, without evidence, that Starmer had covered up the abuses.

The online accusations “crossed a line,” Starmer said, adding, “Once we lose the anchor that truth matters, in the robust debate that we must have, then we are on a very slippery slope.”

— The New York Times