Top Law Officer Urges Nigel Farage to Apologise Over Alleged Racism and Antisemitism.

The UK's attorney general, Richard Hermer, has demanded Nigel Farage to apologise to former schoolmates who claim he targeted with racist abuse them during their time at school.

Hermer stated that Farage had "obviously deeply hurt" many people, according to their accounts of his past behaviour. He commented that the politician's "constantly changing" denials had been less than credible.

“Throughout his answers to valid inquiries, not once has Farage genuinely condemned antisemitism,” Hermer told a news outlet.

Further Testimonies Emerge

A recent investigation last month documented the testimony of more than a dozen former classmates of Farage from Dulwich College.

One, a former pupil, said that a 13-year-old Farage "would sidle up to me and utter: ‘Hitler was right’ or ‘gas them’, at times making a long hiss to mimic the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

Another minority ethnic pupil stated that when he was roughly nine years old, he was subjected to similar treatment by a older Farage.

“He approached a pupil accompanied by two similarly tall mates and targeted anyone looking ‘unusual’,” the former student said. “That happened to me on three occasions; asking me where I was from, and pointing away, saying: ‘That's how you get back,’ to any place you answered you were from.”

Since then, additional individuals have emerged; about 20 people have now alleged they were either subject to or witnesses to highly inappropriate actions by Farage.

The behaviour they described cover the period when Farage was aged 13 to 18.

Evolving Explanations

The Reform leader has rejected that anything he did was "explicitly" racist or antisemitic, and has asserted the former classmates were being untruthful.

Commentators have noted that Farage has neglected to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism more broadly in his denials.

They also reference his inability to reprimand a colleague in his party, Sarah Pochin, after she complained about the number of people of colour she saw in television commercials. She later expressed regret for the statements.

“His evolving narrative about his behaviour to his Jewish classmates [is] hard to believe, to say the least,” Hermer said.

He added: “Suggesting that a group of people have somehow recalled incorrectly the same things about his nasty behaviour simply is not believable."

Question of Character

“If he wishes to be seen as a legitimate candidate for the top job, he urgently needs confront the anxieties of the Jewish people, and say sorry to the many people he has clearly deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer concluded.

“Bigotry in all its forms is completely opposed to the principles of this country and we cannot allow it to ever become legitimised in public life.”

In a other comments, Rachel Reeves said Farage should “say something” if he wanted to appear as a true statesman.

“It speaks volumes how little he has to say, and the guarded phrasing that both you and I would identify as being crafted in a certain style to say something, but also not to say something,” she remarked.

Formal Denials and Subsequent Comments

In formal correspondence prior to the publication of the investigation, Farage’s lawyers claimed that “the suggestion that Mr Farage ever took part in, approved of, or led such conduct is categorically denied”.

Farage later altered his stance in an discussion, saying: “Did I say things 50 years ago that you could interpret as being teenage humour, you could interpret in a today's standards today in a certain manner? Yes.”

He commented that he had “never directly attempted to go and upset anybody”. Farage later released a new statement: “I can tell you categorically that I did not say the things that have been reported aged 13, so long ago.”