Top Law Officer Calls On Nigel Farage to Say Sorry Over Reported Racism and Antisemitism.

The United Kingdom's top law officer, Richard Hermer, has called on the Reform UK leader to apologise to school contemporaries who claim he targeted with racist abuse them during their school days.

Hermer stated that Farage had "obviously deeply hurt" many people, based on their testimonies of his past behaviour. He commented that the politician's "constantly changing" explanations had been less than credible.

“In his answers to valid inquiries, not once has Farage actually condemned antisemitism,” Hermer informed a publication.

New Allegations Emerge

A series of inquiries last month documented the statements of over a dozen one-time schoolmates of Farage from Dulwich College.

One, Peter Ettedgui, said that a 13-year-old Farage "would approach me and utter: ‘Hitler was right’ or ‘send them to the gas chambers’, occasionally including a long hiss to imitate the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

Another student of colour claimed that when he was roughly nine years old, he was subjected to similar treatment by a 17-year-old Farage.

“He approached a pupil accompanied by two equally tall mates and spoke to anyone looking ‘other’,” the person said. “That included me on three separate times; questioning me where I was from, and gesturing, saying: ‘That’s the way back,’ to wherever you said you were from.”

Following the initial report, more people have emerged; approximately twenty people have now alleged they were either targets of or witnesses to highly inappropriate actions by Farage.

The behaviour they recounted span the period when Farage was aged 13 to 18.

Evolving Explanations

The Reform leader has denied that anything he did was "directly" racist or antisemitic, and has claimed the former classmates were not telling the truth.

Critics have noted that Farage has neglected to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism outright in his statements.

They also cite his inability to discipline a party member, Sarah Pochin, after she complained about the number of ethnic minorities she saw in television commercials. She later expressed regret for the remarks.

“His evolving narrative about his behaviour to his schoolmates [is] unconvincing, to say the least,” Hermer stated.

He went on to say: “Claiming that two dozen individuals have somehow recalled incorrectly the same things about his hurtful behaviour simply is not believable."

Question of Character

“If he wants to be seen as a legitimate candidate for high office, he has to confront the anxieties of the Jewish people, and apologise to the many people he has clearly deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer concluded.

“Racism in all its forms is completely opposed to the standards of this country and we must not permit it to ever become legitimised in politics.”

In a different discussion, Rachel Reeves said Farage should “speak out” if he wanted to appear as a real leader.

“It is very telling how little he has to say, and the guarded phrasing that both you and I would understand as being written in a specific manner to say something, but also dodge the issue,” she said.

Legal Letters and Later Statements

In lawyers' communications before the publication of the investigation, Farage’s legal team stated that “the suggestion that Mr Farage ever was involved in, approved of, or led such conduct is strongly rejected”.

Farage later seemingly shifted his stance in an interview, saying: “Did I say things as a youth that you could view as being banter, you could interpret in a modern light today in some way? Yes.”

He commented that he had “not ever purposely really tried to go and harm anybody”. Farage afterwards put out a fresh denial: “I can tell you categorically that I did not say the things that have been printed when I was 13, decades in the past.”