The government has delayed a planned overhaul of social care, unveiling an independent commission which will not produce its findings until 2028, just before the next election. Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting says the review, led by veteran Whitehall troubleshooter Baroness Louise Casey, will begin in April and aims to build a “cross-party consensus” to create an enduring National Care Service. Nick Clegg has been replaced as Meta’s president of global affairs after six years at the tech giant. The former Lib Dem leader is being succeeded by Joel Kaplan, a prominent Republican who served as deputy chief of staff under George W Bush. Temperatures dropped to a bitter -8C in some parts of the UK last night as the country was hit by an Arctic blast. Yellow weather warnings for snow and ice are in place across most of England, Wales and Scotland, with freezing temperatures expected to last until Monday.

What can Keir Starmer do about Elon Musk?

Keir Starmer’s year begins with a tricky question, says Patrick Maguire in The Times: “What is the prime minister to do about the world’s richest man and his vendetta against the Labour party?” This week alone, Elon Musk has declared Britain a “wasteland for international investment”, blamed Starmer for the misery inflicted by grooming gangs, and suggested that Jess Phillips – the minister who refused Oldham Council’s request for a government inquiry into the issue – take the place of far-right leader Tommy Robinson in prison. Many in Westminster hope the incoming US government will benefit the UK, because Donald Trump is an “Anglophile”. But in the mind of the president-elect’s most important backer, Britain is a “dystopia of wokery, totalitarian thought police and violent crime”.

Musk’s “constant criticism of the government” might merely be irritating. But Musk owns the social network that makes “dead-eyed junkies” out of Washington and Westminster and still drives much of our political agenda. So what can Starmer do to improve relations? The answer may be “nothing”. Tony Blair has Musk on his “billionaire speed dial”, but he’s hardly likely to burn through capital on Starmer’s behalf. Influential Labour figures like Rachel Reeves and Wes Streeting are pro-tech, but that may not move the dial. And Musk is no longer just a commentator on British politics, but a “power player within it”. Even if his mooted £100m donation to Reform UK never materialises, Nigel Farage and the Tories are now “part of his feedback loop”. Just as he rails against grooming gangs, for example, Kemi Badenoch calls for a public inquiry. Starmer’s top team hope Musk’s fixations will eventually move elsewhere, and so any damage from all this will be limited. On recent evidence “it may already be too late”.

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