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The UK's top law officer, Richard Hermer, has called on the Reform UK leader to apologise to school contemporaries who claim he targeted with racist abuse them during their years in education.

Hermer remarked that Farage had "obviously deeply hurt" many people, judging by their descriptions of his actions as a youth. He commented that the leader's "shifting" statements had been difficult to believe.

“Throughout his replies to valid inquiries, not once has Farage actually condemned antisemitism,” Hermer stated to a publication.

New Allegations Surface

A series of inquiries last month documented the testimony of more than a dozen ex-pupils of Farage from a south London school.

One, a former pupil, described 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 simulate the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

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

“He came over to a pupil flanked by two tall mates and addressed anyone looking ‘other’,” the individual said. “That involved me on three separate times; inquiring where I was from, and pointing away, saying: ‘Go back that way,’ to wherever you answered you were from.”

After the story broke, additional individuals have come forward; approximately twenty people have now alleged they were either targets of or observed highly inappropriate conduct by Farage.

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

Denials and Shifting Positions

The political figure has denied that anything he did was "blatantly" racist or antisemitic, and has suggested the former classmates were not telling the truth.

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

They also cite his failure to reprimand a fellow Reform MP, a MP, after she complained about the number of black and brown people she saw in television commercials. 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 said.

He went on to say: “Suggesting that a group of people have somehow forgotten the same things about his nasty behaviour simply is not believable."

Question of Character

“If he wants to be seen as a serious contender for high office, he has to address the concerns of the Jewish community, and apologise to the many people 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 must not permit it to ever become legitimised in politics.”

In a separate interview, Rachel Reeves said Farage should “make a statement” if he wanted to look like a true statesman.

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

Formal Denials and Subsequent Comments

In legal letters before the publication of the investigation, Farage’s representatives claimed that “the allegation that Mr Farage ever engaged in, condoned, or led such conduct is categorically denied”.

Farage later seemingly shifted his stance in an discussion, saying: “Have I said things as a youth that you could view as being playground talk, you could interpret in a contemporary context today in some sort of way? Possibly.”

He added that he had “not once intentionally really tried to go and upset anybody”. Farage subsequently released a new statement: “I can tell you unequivocally that I did not say the things that have been reported as a 13-year-old, so long ago.”