Former cabinet minister urges UK Government to abandon X

A former cabinet secretary has urged the UK Government to leave X amid concerns the platform’s AI was generating sexualised images of children.

Louise Haigh, who was previously transport secretary, said continuing to use the social media platform was “unconscionable”.

Earlier in the week, media watchdog Ofcom contacted X to raise concerns about how Grok, the site’s AI tool, was being used.  

Reports suggest some users are asking the tool to create child sexual abuse materials and “undressed images” of women.

Haigh, who resigned from government after it emerged she had previously been convicted of a fraud offence, said she had maintained an X account “because a critical mass of people, including the government and journalists who we need to communicate with as MPs, remained on the site”.

She continued: “However, the revelations around the enablement, if not encouragement, of child sexual abuse mean it is unconscionable to use the site for another minute.

“I call on my party and my government to remove themselves entirely from X and communicate with the public where they actually participate online and can be protected from such illegality.”

Haigh’s account remains on the website but posts have been protected, and she said she had not used it personally “for some time”.

Labour MPs last year urged government ministers to reconsider the use of X amid concerns about safety, political influence, and its role in amplifying extremist content.

A review is currently underway by the Government Communication Service. 

The UK Government suspended all paid advertising on the platform in April 2023.

But in answer to questions in the House of Lords on the topic on Monday, government whip Baroness Anderson said the government “will continue to post organic content on X” because millions of British citizens continue to use it.

She added: “Not only are 19.2 million British citizens registered with X, but 10.8 million families use X as their main news source; that is more than any other social platform, which I find genuinely extraordinary. 

“We would be doing a disservice by removing government communications from X when that is where people are actually accessing them; we are making sure that facts are available.”

However, a Downing Street spokesperson yesterday insisted that “all options were on the table”, including potentially leaving the platform, if X did not take action on intimate deepfakes.

Ofcom confirmed it was investigating those reports on Monday.

In a statement, the regulator said: “We are aware of serious concerns raised about a feature on Grok on X that produces undressed images of people and sexualised images of children.

“We have made urgent contact with X and xAI to understand what steps they have taken to comply with their legal duties to protect users in the UK. 

“Based on their response we will undertake a swift assessment to determine whether there are potential compliance issues that warrant investigation.”

Last weekend, X issued a warning to users not to use Grok to generate illegal content, including child sexual abuse material. 

Also commenting on the platform, Musk said: “Anyone using Grok to make illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content.”