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The UK's attorney general, Richard Hermer, has called on the Reform UK leader to issue an apology to school contemporaries who assert he racially abused them during their school days.

Hermer said that Farage had "obviously deeply hurt" many people, judging by their testimonies of his past behaviour. He added that the leader's "evolving" explanations had been less than credible.

“During his answers to legitimate questions, not once has Farage actually condemned antisemitism,” Hermer stated to a publication.

Further Testimonies Surface

A recent investigation last month outlined the statements of over a dozen one-time schoolmates of Farage from a private college.

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

Another minority ethnic pupil stated that when he was roughly nine years old, he was subjected to similar treatment by a older Farage.

“He came over to a pupil accompanied by two similarly tall mates and addressed anyone looking ‘unusual’,” the former student said. “That happened to me on three occasions; inquiring where I was from, and gesturing, saying: ‘Go back that way,’ to any place you said you were from.”

Following the initial report, others have come forward; approximately twenty people have now alleged they were either targets of or saw highly inappropriate actions by Farage.

The incidents they recounted span the period when Farage was aged a teenager.

Denials and Shifting Positions

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

Observers have highlighted that Farage has failed to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism in a wider sense in his statements.

They also point to his reluctance to discipline a fellow Reform MP, a MP, after she complained about the number of people of colour she saw in television commercials. She later said sorry for the remarks.

“His evolving narrative about his behaviour to his schoolmates [is] unconvincing, to say the least,” Hermer commented.

He continued: “Arguing that two dozen individuals have somehow forgotten the same things about his hurtful behaviour simply lacks credibility."

Question of Character

“If he aspires to be seen as a legitimate candidate for prime minister, he must acknowledge the concerns of the Jewish people, and apologise to the those he has clearly deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer stated.

“Prejudice in all its forms is completely opposed to the values of this country and we should not let it to ever become accepted in society.”

In a separate interview, Rachel Reeves said Farage should “say something” if he wanted to appear as a genuine leader.

“It is very telling how little he has to say, and the guarded phrasing that both you and I would understand as being drafted in a specific manner to communicate, but also avoid saying certain things,” she noted.

Formal Denials and Subsequent Comments

In formal correspondence prior to the release of the report, Farage’s representatives claimed that “the implication that Mr Farage ever engaged in, supported, or led such conduct is categorically denied”.

Farage later altered his explanation in an discussion, stating: “Have I said things decades ago that you could interpret as being teenage humour, you could interpret in a modern light today in some way? Yes.”

He added that he had “not ever purposely attempted to go and upset anybody”. Farage later released a further comment: “I can tell you unequivocally that I did not say the things that have been printed when I was 13, nearly 50 years ago.”