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The UK's attorney general, one of the most senior Jewish ministers, has called on the Reform UK leader to apologise to school contemporaries who assert he racially abused them during their school days.

Hermer stated that Farage had "clearly deeply hurt" many people, judging by their descriptions of his alleged conduct. He noted that the leader's "evolving" statements had been less than credible.

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

Fresh Claims Surface

A series of inquiries last month documented the accounts of several former classmates of Farage from Dulwich College.

One, a former pupil, recalled that a 13-year-old Farage "came up to me and utter: ‘Hitler was right’ or ‘gas them’, occasionally including a long hiss to mimic the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

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

“He came over to a pupil accompanied by two equally tall mates and addressed anyone looking ‘other’,” the former student said. “That happened to 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.”

After the story broke, more people have stepped forward; around two dozen people have now claimed they were either targets of or observed hurtful actions by Farage.

The behaviour they outlined cover the period when Farage was aged between 13 and 18.

Denials and Shifting Positions

The Reform leader has denied that anything he did was "explicitly" racist or antisemitic, and has asserted the individuals were not telling the truth.

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

They also reference his reluctance to sanction a party member, a MP, after she complained about the number of people of colour she saw in adverts. She later expressed regret for the remarks.

“Nigel Farage’s shifting account about his behaviour to his schoolmates [is] hard to believe, to say the least,” Hermer stated.

He went on to say: “Claiming that 20 people have somehow misremembered the same things about his offensive behaviour simply lacks credibility."

Demand for Accountability

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

“Bigotry in all its forms is abhorrent to the principles of this country and we cannot allow it to ever become legitimised in society.”

In a other comments, a senior politician said Farage should “speak out” if he wanted to appear as a true statesman.

“It says a lot how very little he has to say, and the precisely drafted words that both you and I would identify as being written in a certain style to say something, but also dodge the issue,” she said.

Formal Denials and Subsequent Comments

In lawyers' communications before the publication of the investigation, Farage’s lawyers asserted that “the allegation that Mr Farage ever was involved in, condoned, or led such conduct is categorically denied”.

Farage later seemingly shifted his position in an appearance, remarking: “Have I said things 50 years ago that you could view as being playground talk, you could interpret in a modern light today in some way? Yes.”

He said that he had “never directly sought to go and harm anybody”. Farage subsequently put out a new statement: “I can tell you categorically that I did not say the things that have been reported when I was 13, nearly 50 years ago.”