Attorney General Urges Reform UK Leader to Apologise Over Reported Racism and Antisemitism.

The United Kingdom's top law officer, one of the most senior Jewish ministers, has called on the Reform UK leader to apologise to school contemporaries who claim he racially abused them during their time at school.

Hermer said that Farage had "undoubtedly deeply hurt" many people, according to their accounts of his actions as a youth. He commented that the politician's "constantly changing" denials had been difficult to believe.

“During his replies to legitimate questions, not once has Farage truly condemned antisemitism,” Hermer told a publication.

New Allegations Surface

A recent investigation last month detailed the accounts of more than a dozen one-time schoolmates of Farage from Dulwich College.

One, Peter Ettedgui, recalled that a 13-year-old Farage "would sidle up to me and say: ‘Hitler was right’ or ‘gas them’, occasionally including a long hiss to simulate the sound of the gas showers”.

Another pupil from an ethnic minority alleged that when he was about nine, he was similarly targeted by a 17-year-old Farage.

“He approached a pupil with two equally tall mates and addressed anyone looking ‘unusual’,” the individual said. “That involved me on three occasions; questioning me where I was from, and pointing away, saying: ‘That’s the way back,’ to wherever you replied you were from.”

Since then, additional individuals have emerged; approximately twenty people have now claimed they were either victims of or witnesses to highly inappropriate past behaviour by Farage.

The behaviour they outlined cover the period when Farage was aged a teenager.

Evolving Explanations

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

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

They also reference his reluctance to discipline a fellow Reform MP, a MP, after she made remarks about the number of people of colour she saw in adverts. She later said sorry for the statements.

“His shifting account about his behaviour to his peers [is] hard to believe, to say the least,” Hermer commented.

He continued: “Arguing that 20 people have all forgotten the same things about his offensive behaviour simply lacks credibility."

Call for Leadership

“If he wishes to be seen as a legitimate candidate for prime minister, he has to acknowledge the concerns of the Jewish people, and say sorry to the numerous individuals he has clearly deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer stated.

“Bigotry in all its forms is anathema to the values of this country and we cannot allow it to ever become accepted in society.”

In a other comments, a senior politician said Farage should “say something” if he wanted to look like a genuine leader.

“It speaks volumes how very little he has to say, and the guarded phrasing that both you and I would understand as being written in a particular way to communicate, but also not to say something,” she remarked.

Formal Denials and Subsequent Comments

In formal correspondence before the release of the report, Farage’s legal team asserted that “the allegation that Mr Farage ever took part in, approved of, or led racist or antisemitic behaviour is categorically denied”.

Farage later altered his explanation in an interview, saying: “Have I said things decades ago that you could interpret as being teenage humour, you could interpret in a today's standards today in some sort of way? Possibly.”

He commented that he had “not ever purposely sought to go and upset anybody”. Farage afterwards issued a fresh denial: “I can tell you definitely that I did not say the things that have been reported when I was 13, decades in the past.”