Key points
- Starmer to give speech on NHS reform later this morning | Musk criticism likely to be addressed
- PM attacks Tories for 'chronic illness' of NHS
- Musk says Farage 'doesn't have what it takes' to lead Reform UK
- NHS app to give patients 'more choice' in bid to cut waiting lists
- Can Starmer silence Musk? Listen to the PJAS podcast at the top of the page
- Live reporting by Tim Baker
08:01:50
Why have Musk and Farage fallen out?
Elon Musk and Nigel Farage appear to have fallen out over support for Tommy Robinson.
The X owner posted on social media yesterday following days of headlines over his comments about the historical grooming scandal that took place across UK towns and cities more than a decade ago.
Mr Farage had previously been reported to be attempting to solicit donations from Mr Musk.
Political correspondent Tamara Cohen goes through the whole story below.
07:47:56
PJAS: Can Starmer silence Musk?
Sky News deputy political editor Sam Coates and Politico's Jack Blanchard are back for 2025 with their guide to the day ahead in politics in under 20 minutes.
The drama is also back - with Elon Musk causing more than a stir in British politics after changing his mind about Reform UK leader Nigel Farage.
It comes after Musk launched an attack on Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and his safeguarding minister Jess Phillips over their handling of past grooming gang cases.
How can the government respond to the richest man in the world's running commentary on British politics?
Also - the prime minister launches the government's full plan for the NHS this morning, but can it really bring down waiting lists?
You can send a WhatsApp to Jack and Sam on 07511 867 633 or email them:[email protected]
👉Listen to Politics At Jack And Sam's on your podcast app👈
07:34:59
NHS staff 'up for the change' to reduce waiting lists
Health minister Karin Smyth is speaking to Sky News this morning.
She is asked about Labour's plans to reduce the NHS waiting lists - including new seven day hubs community hubs.
The minister is asked if NHS staff are ready to embrace the changes being implemented by the government.
"I think they are up for the change," she says, adding that they know they are working "inefficiently" and not providing ideal care due to the way the NHS is currently set up.
Fixing this includes providing a more comprehensive digital offering as well, Ms Smyth says.
Asked how the government can be judged on tackling waiting lists, the minister says the plan is for an extra 500,000 appointments each year.
Starmer able to defend himself
Ms Smyth is asked about the ongoing criticisms of the government coming from Elon Musk.
In the past few hours, the Tesla chief has posted on social media that Sir Keir Starmer should be in "jail".
Ms Smyth says the PM was "lauded" for his response to child sex exploitation when he was head of the Crown Prosecution Service - and he will defend that record.
She adds that Sir Keir is "not after praise" and that it should be the victims who are focused on.
07:05:31
06:39:57
Starmer attacks Conservatives for 'chronic illness' of NHS
The prime minister has written an article in The Times laying out his plans for the NHS - and why he believes it is in the situation it is.
Sir Keir Starmer wrote: "The NHS exhibits all the symptoms of chronic illness caused by the Conservative government's choices.
"Under-resourced. Overstretched. Inefficient. Patients and staff failed.
"Too many doctors, nurses and other dedicated staff are no longer able to give the standard of care they desperately want to."
The PM says his "prescription" for the NHS includes a plan to "drag" social care out of hospitals and into the community, "harness technology", "regear" it to improve efficiency, cut "pointless appointments" and give staff "the tools they need to deliver".
Sir Keir adds "patients must be able to manage appointments, get test results and access help" within an app.
While he says "not everyone will welcome" his plans, the prime minister said he promised change - and he wants to deliver it.
He will be giving more details for his plans in a speech later this morning - follow live in the Politics Hub.
06:30:39
Good morning
Welcome back to the Politics Hub.
Sir Keir Starmer is giving a speech this morning where he will lay out his plans to reduce waiting lists in the health service, and also improve the NHS in general.
The PM will be hoping to start the new year strong, following his administration drawing criticism at the end of 2024 for its economic policies.
Sir Keir is likely to be asked for his views on Elon Musk, following the Tesla chief's criticism of his handling of past grooming gang cases.
Mr Musk - who is joining the Trump government when it takes office later this month - has also engaged in a war of words with Reform leader Nigel Farage.
Parliament is returning today as well, following the Christmas recess.
Health minister Karin Smyth is speaking to Sky News just after 7am.
And Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper is on just after 8am.
16:00:01
That's all for the Politics Hub today
We'll be back tomorrow morning for the start of a new week in Westminster - the first Monday of the year.
But until then, you can scroll through the page to catch up on Sunday, and see the highlights from Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips.
Thanks for joining us!
15:40:01
Reform deputy praises 'popular' Elon Musk - as Labour criticises 'ridiculous' grooming gangs intervention
Reform's deputy leader has praised Elon Musk as "popular" and "appreciated" by the British public - as a government minister criticised the tech tycoon for "ridiculous" and "ill informed" comments on the UK grooming scandal.
Speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, Richard Tice defended the owner of X and Tesla as "one of the greatest entrepreneurs in history".
He said he was content to have Mr Musk, who is considering making a donation to Reform UK, support his party, adding: "He has a great interest in and the politics of this country and in the economy growing."
It comes in contrast to the stance taken by Wes Streeting, the health secretary, who said he was "not interested" in what Mr Musk had to say on the grooming scandal that took place across a swathe of UK towns and cities more than a decade ago.
Girls as young as 11 were groomed and raped across a number of towns in England - including Oldham, Rochdale, Rotherham and Telford - over a decade ago in a national scandal that was exposed in 2013.
15:04:08
'This is a surprise!' Farage reacts to Musk comment
Nigel Farage has just responded to a claim from Elon Musk that he "doesn't have what it takes" to lead Reform UK.
The Reform UK leader said: "Well, this is a surprise!
"Elon is a remarkable individual but on this I am afraid I disagree."
He added: "My view remains that Tommy Robinson is not right for Reform and I never sell out my principles."
Mr Musk has endorsed Robinson, who iscurrently serving an 18-month prison sentence for contempt of court.for "telling the truth" about grooming gangs in the UK, writing on X: "Free Tommy Robinson".
Yesterday at a Reform party conference, Mr Farage distanced himself from Robinson, saying the jailed activist was "not what we need".
Robinson - whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon -admitted at Woolwich Crown Court in October to breaching an injunctionbanning him from repeating libellous allegations against a Syrian refugee schoolboy, after he wassuccessfully sued for libel in 2021.
In the last hour, the billionaire businessman said on social media that Reform UK "needs a new leader".
Mr Musk said: "Farage doesn't have what it takes."
14:40:01
What has Elon Musk said about grooming gangs scandal?
In an unusual turn of events, billionaire businessman Elon Musk last week criticised the Labour government's reluctance to launch an inquiry into the Oldham grooming gangs scandal.
Jess Phillips, the safeguarding minister, said that while she recognised the "strength of feeling" over the matter, she believed it was for "Oldham Council alone to decide to commission an inquiry into child sexual exploitation locally, rather than for the government to intervene".
However, Mr Musk, who has spoken positively about Reform UK on X and isreportedly considering making a donation to Nigel Farage's party,has been critical of the government's handling of child sexual exploitation across a number of towns and cities more than a decade ago.
He has claimed Sir Keir Starmer had failed to bring "rape gangs" to justice when he led the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
In 2013, Sir Keir introduced new guidelines for how child sexual abuse victims should be treated and how a case should be built and presented in court.
Mr Musk, who will become US president-elect Donald Trump's efficiency tsar this month, also argued that safeguarding minister Jess Phillips "deserves to be in prison" after she rejected requests from Oldham Council for a national inquiry into instances of child sexual exploitation in the town.
He claimed "the real reason she's [Ms Phillips] refusing to investigate the rape gangs is that it would obviously lead to the blaming of Keir Stamer (head of the CPS at the time)."