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The United Kingdom's attorney general, one of the most senior Jewish ministers, has called on the Reform UK leader to issue an apology to school contemporaries who allege he targeted with racist abuse them during their school days.

Hermer stated that Farage had "obviously deeply hurt" many people, judging by their testimonies of his alleged conduct. He commented that the politician's "shifting" explanations had been less than credible.

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

Fresh Claims Emerge

A series of inquiries last month outlined the accounts of over a dozen former classmates of Farage from a south London school.

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

Another pupil from an ethnic minority stated that when he was about nine, he was similarly targeted by a older Farage.

“He came over to a pupil flanked by two similarly tall mates and addressed anyone looking ‘unusual’,” the former student said. “That involved me on three occasions; asking me where I was from, and motioning, saying: ‘That’s the way back,’ to wherever you replied you were from.”

After the story broke, more people have stepped forward; approximately twenty people have now claimed they were either victims of or saw highly inappropriate past behaviour by Farage.

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

Evolving Explanations

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

Critics have highlighted that Farage has not managed to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism more broadly in his statements.

They also point to his inability to sanction a fellow Reform MP, a MP, after she expressed views about the number of ethnic minorities she saw in adverts. She later said sorry for the statements.

“Nigel Farage’s evolving narrative about his behaviour to his peers [is] hard to believe, to say the least,” Hermer stated.

He continued: “Claiming that two dozen individuals have all misremembered the same things about his nasty behaviour simply lacks credibility."

Call for Leadership

“If he wants to be seen as a credible figure for the top job, he urgently needs address the anxieties of the Jewish people, and say sorry to the numerous individuals he has obviously deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer concluded.

“Bigotry in all its forms is anathema to the principles of this country and we cannot allow it to ever become normalised in politics.”

In a other comments, Rachel Reeves said Farage should “say something” if he wanted to be considered a real leader.

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

Legal Letters and Later Statements

In lawyers' communications before the publication of the report, Farage’s legal team stated that “the allegation that Mr Farage ever took part in, approved of, or led this behaviour is completely refuted”.

Farage later seemingly shifted his explanation in an appearance, stating: “Have I said things 50 years ago that you could interpret as being playground talk, you could interpret in a today's standards today in some way? Possibly.”

He added that he had “not once intentionally sought to go and upset anybody”. Farage afterwards released a further comment: “I can tell you unequivocally that I did not say the things that have been reported when I was 13, nearly 50 years ago.”