Public transcript

Elon Musk on Europe, the far right and civil war in Britain | The Economist

By: The Economist
Length: 7 min
Language: English
Text from: the video's captions
Transcribed: 13 October 2026

Read the full transcript Open on YouTube

Notes in English.

Summary

In this short, heated exchange with The Economist, Elon Musk rejects the label 'far right', saying he supports normal people and policies such as secure borders, safe cities and sensible spending. He defends his claim that 'civil war in Britain is inevitable' on current immigration trends, while the interviewer, who lives in the UK, counters that Musk has not visited in years and that UK crime figures contradict his picture. The interview also covers Musk's posting of the film Citizen Vigilante, accusations of racism, and whether he should influence European politics at all. Musk concludes that he does not care that some people loathe him and believes more people like him than dislike him.

Key points

Musk rejects the label 'far right', saying he supports 'normal people' and policies like secure borders, safe cities and sensible spending.
He argues that positions he holds were mainstream in speeches by Obama and Hillary Clinton 10 to 15 years ago.
Musk claims 'civil war in Britain is inevitable' on the current trend, arguing a rapidly growing group with antithetical views will clash with those who oppose them.
The interviewer counters that Musk has not visited the UK in a few years and that London is much safer than any US city, with violent crime coming down.
The interviewer criticises Musk for posting the film Citizen Vigilante for 48 hours, saying it glorifies vigilante violence against a Muslim immigrant family.
Musk denies being racist, citing his half-Indian partner, their four children and senior executives of all races at his companies.
Musk says he is against immigration by people with views antithetical to the West, and against rape, murder and laws contrary to Western norms.
Musk says he does not care that some people loathe him, and believes far more people like him than dislike him.

Questions it answers

00:00Far right label

Why does Elon Musk reject being called far right?

Musk denies supporting the far right, saying he supports normal people and policies like secure borders, safe cities and sensible spending, which he says were mainstream 10 to 15 years ago.

Musk says the far right label is false and misleading.
He jokes that Obama and Hillary speeches could be mistaken for Trump speeches.

01:29Civil war claim

Why does Musk say civil war in Britain is inevitable?

Musk says that on the current trend, a rapidly growing group with beliefs antithetical to Western beliefs will eventually try to impose their views, and the resulting conflict is what he calls civil war.

Musk stands by his 'civil war is inevitable' post.
He attributes it to immigration trends and clashing values.

02:06Pushback on UK crime

How does the interviewer challenge Musk's view of Britain?

The interviewer, who lives in the UK, says Musk has not visited in a few years, that London is safer than any US city, and that UK violent crime is coming down, accusing Musk of living in a cloistered existence.

The interviewer says the numbers disprove Musk's claims.
He invites Musk to tour Britain with him.

03:06Influence on American opinion

How does the interviewer say Musk shapes opinion about the UK?

The interviewer says Musk's posts, including 48 hours of the film Citizen Vigilante, have led Americans to see the UK as dangerous and overrun with grooming gangs, and calls posting the film irresponsible.

Musk posted Citizen Vigilante on X for 48 hours.
The interviewer says the film glorifies vigilante violence against a Muslim immigrant family.

04:38Racism accusations

How does Musk respond to racism and anti-Muslim accusations?

Musk cites his half-Indian partner, their four children, one named after a famous Indian physicist, and executives of all races at his companies, and says he is against immigration by people with antithetical views.

Musk denies being racist.
He says he is against rape, murder and laws contrary to Western norms.

05:30Power and loathing

Does Musk accept that people loathe him for his political influence?

Musk says he thinks of the West collectively, admits some people loathe him, says he does not care, and believes far more people like him than dislike him and that more people hate the media than the media realises.

Musk says he does not care about being loathed.
He claims a quarter billion followers means more people like him.

Notes

Overview

This is a combative exchange between an Economist interviewer and Elon Musk about his political stances on Europe, immigration and Britain.

On the 'far right' label

Musk rejects being called far right, saying he supports "normal people".
He claims his positions were mainstream 10 to 15 years ago, joking that speeches by Obama or Hillary could be passed off as Trump speeches to people on what he calls the "lunatic left".
He lists his principles as secure borders, safe cities and sensible spending, and admonishes the media for what he calls an absurd, false characterisation.

Civil war in Britain

Musk stands by his claim that "civil war in Britain is inevitable" on the current trend.
He argues that a large, rapidly growing group with beliefs antithetical to Western beliefs will eventually try to impose their views, and opposition to that is what constitutes civil war.
The interviewer, who lives in the UK, pushes back: Musk has not been there for a few years, London is safer than any US city, and UK violent crime is coming down.
The interviewer says Musk's posts have led many Americans to believe the UK is overrun with dangerous immigrants and grooming gangs.

Citizen Vigilante and racism accusations

The interviewer criticises Musk for posting the film Citizen Vigilante on X for 48 hours, saying it paints a dystopian picture of Europe and glorifies vigilante violence against a Muslim immigrant family.
Musk calls it a movie worth watching and denies being racist, citing his half-Indian partner, their four children (one named after a famous Indian physicist) and executives of all races at his companies.
Asked if he is anti-Muslim, Musk says he is against people coming to a country with antithetical views, against rape and murder, and against imposing rules contrary to Western norms.

Influence and public opinion

Asked why he should shape European politics while not living there, Musk says he thinks of the West collectively.
The interviewer says this is why some people loathe him; Musk says he does not care and believes far more people like him than dislike him, and that more people hate the media than the media realises.

Text from the video's own captions. Summary and notes written by AI from the transcript, so check anything important against the recording.