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The United Kingdom's attorney general, Richard Hermer, has urged Nigel Farage to apologise to school contemporaries who claim he racially abused them during their school days.

Hermer stated that Farage had "obviously deeply hurt" many people, based on their descriptions of his actions as a youth. He noted that the leader's "constantly changing" statements had been difficult to believe.

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

New Allegations Emerge

A recent investigation last month outlined the statements of over a dozen ex-pupils of Farage from Dulwich College.

One, a former pupil, described that a 13-year-old Farage "would approach me and utter: ‘The Nazi leader was correct’ or ‘gas them’, sometimes adding a long hiss to imitate the sound of the gas showers”.

Another pupil from an ethnic minority claimed 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 equally tall mates and targeted anyone looking ‘unusual’,” the individual said. “That involved me on three separate times; inquiring where I was from, and gesturing, saying: ‘Go back that way,’ to any place you replied you were from.”

Since then, additional individuals have come forward; around two dozen people have now claimed they were either subject to or observed deeply offensive past behaviour by Farage.

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

Evolving Explanations

The Reform leader has denied that anything he did was "blatantly" racist or antisemitic, and has claimed the individuals were being untruthful.

Commentators have noted that Farage has not managed to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism in a wider sense in his responses.

They also point to his failure to sanction a colleague in his party, a MP, after she expressed views about the number of ethnic minorities she saw in television commercials. She later apologised for the statements.

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

He added: “Claiming that two dozen individuals have somehow recalled incorrectly the same things about his offensive behaviour simply lacks credibility."

Question of Character

“If he aspires to be seen as a legitimate candidate for high office, he has to acknowledge the anxieties of the Jewish people, and say sorry to the many people he has clearly deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer concluded.

“Bigotry in all its forms is completely opposed to the principles of this country and we should not let it to ever become normalised in public life.”

In a different discussion, Rachel Reeves said Farage should “speak out” if he wanted to look like a real leader.

“It is very telling how little he has to say, and the precisely drafted words that both you and I would understand as being drafted in a specific manner to say something, but also dodge the issue,” she said.

Formal Denials and Subsequent Comments

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

Farage later seemingly shifted his explanation in an interview, remarking: “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 sort of way? Possibly.”

He added that he had “never directly attempted to go and hurt anybody”. Farage subsequently released a new statement: “I can tell you definitely that I did not say the things that have been published when I was 13, so long ago.”