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The UK's top law officer, Richard Hermer, has urged Nigel Farage to apologise to school contemporaries who assert he racially abused them during their time at school.

Hermer stated that Farage had "obviously deeply hurt" many people, according to their accounts of his actions as a youth. He added that the leader's "constantly changing" explanations had been difficult to believe.

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

New Allegations Surface

A recent investigation last month documented the accounts of more than a dozen ex-pupils of Farage from a private college.

One, Peter Ettedgui, described that a 13-year-old Farage "came up to me and say: ‘The Nazi leader was correct’ or ‘send them to the gas chambers’, at times making a long hiss to simulate the sound of the gas showers”.

Another student of colour stated that when he was roughly nine years old, he was similarly targeted by a older Farage.

“He walked up to a pupil accompanied by two similarly tall mates and addressed anyone looking ‘other’,” the person said. “That included me on three occasions; inquiring where I was from, and motioning, saying: ‘Go back that way,’ to any place you answered you were from.”

Since then, others have emerged; around two dozen people have now stated they were either subject to or witnesses to highly inappropriate actions by Farage.

The alleged events they outlined span the period when Farage was aged 13 to 18.

Denials and Shifting Positions

The political figure has rejected that anything he did was "blatantly" racist or antisemitic, and has asserted the former classmates were being untruthful.

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

They also cite his failure to reprimand a fellow Reform MP, Sarah Pochin, after she expressed views about the number of ethnic minorities she saw in adverts. She later expressed regret for the statements.

“His shifting account about his behaviour to his peers [is] unconvincing, to say the least,” Hermer said.

He continued: “Suggesting that a group of people have somehow recalled incorrectly the same things about his nasty behaviour simply isn’t credible."

Question of Character

“If he wants to be seen as a credible figure for high office, he urgently needs acknowledge the fears of the Jewish people, 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 values of this country and we must not permit it to ever become legitimised in public life.”

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

“It says a lot how very little he has to say, and the guarded phrasing that both you and I would identify as being written in a specific manner to say something, but also dodge the issue,” she noted.

Legal Letters and Later Statements

In legal letters prior to the publication of the investigation, Farage’s legal team stated that “the allegation that Mr Farage ever engaged in, approved of, or led racist or antisemitic behaviour is strongly rejected”.

Farage later appeared to change his position in an appearance, saying: “Have I said things 50 years ago that you could view as being teenage humour, you could interpret in a contemporary context today in some sort of way? Perhaps.”

He said that he had “never directly attempted to go and hurt anybody”. Farage subsequently put out a further comment: “I can tell you categorically that I did not say the things that have been printed when I was 13, decades in the past.”