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The United Kingdom's attorney general, Richard Hermer, has called on the Reform UK leader to apologise to former schoolmates who allege he racially abused them during their years in education.

Hermer said that Farage had "clearly deeply hurt" many people, judging by their accounts of his alleged conduct. He added that the leader's "constantly changing" denials had been difficult to believe.

“In his defensive responses to legitimate questions, not once has Farage truly condemned antisemitism,” Hermer stated to a news outlet.

New Allegations Surface

A series of inquiries last month detailed the statements of several ex-pupils of Farage from a private 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 simulate the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

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

“He walked up to a pupil accompanied by two equally tall mates and spoke to anyone looking ‘other’,” the person said. “That happened to me on three separate times; inquiring where I was from, and pointing away, saying: ‘That's how you get back,’ to wherever you answered you were from.”

After the story broke, additional individuals have stepped forward; around two dozen people have now claimed they were either subject to or saw hurtful past behaviour by Farage.

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

Denials and Shifting Positions

The political figure has denied that anything he did was "explicitly" racist or antisemitic, and has asserted the accusers were misremembering.

Observers have pointed out that Farage has failed to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism more broadly in his responses.

They also cite his reluctance to reprimand a party member, a MP, after she complained about the number of black and brown people she saw in television commercials. She later apologised for the statements.

“Nigel Farage’s shifting account about his behaviour to his schoolmates [is] not credible, to say the least,” Hermer commented.

He continued: “Arguing that two dozen individuals have all forgotten the same things about his hurtful behaviour simply is not believable."

Question of Character

“If he wants to be seen as a serious contender for high office, he urgently needs confront the fears of the Jewish community, and say sorry to the numerous individuals he has obviously deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer concluded.

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

In a separate interview, the Chancellor said Farage should “make a statement” if he wanted to be considered a true statesman.

“It speaks volumes how very little he has to say, and the precisely drafted words that both you and I would understand as being drafted in a certain style to say something, but also avoid saying certain things,” she said.

Legal Letters and Later Statements

In legal letters prior to the publication of the investigation, Farage’s legal team claimed that “the suggestion that Mr Farage ever was involved in, condoned, or led racist or antisemitic behaviour is strongly rejected”.

Farage later appeared to change his stance in an interview, saying: “Have I said things decades ago that you could interpret as being teenage humour, you could interpret in a contemporary context today in some sort of way? Perhaps.”

He said that he had “not once intentionally really tried to go and hurt anybody”. Farage later released a fresh denial: “I can tell you unequivocally that I did not say the things that have been reported when I was 13, so long ago.”