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

Hermer stated that Farage had "undoubtedly deeply hurt" many people, based on their accounts of his actions as a youth. He added that the leader's "shifting" explanations had been unconvincing.

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

New Allegations Surface

A recent investigation last month outlined the statements of more than a dozen one-time schoolmates of Farage from Dulwich College.

One, Peter Ettedgui, described that a 13-year-old Farage "would sidle up to me and say: ‘Hitler was right’ or ‘gas them’, sometimes adding a long hiss to simulate the sound of the gas showers”.

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

“He approached a pupil accompanied by two tall mates and targeted anyone looking ‘unusual’,” the individual said. “That involved me on three occasions; inquiring where I was from, and gesturing, saying: ‘Go back that way,’ to any place you replied you were from.”

Since then, others have come forward; approximately twenty people have now claimed they were either targets of or saw highly inappropriate conduct by Farage.

The incidents they described span the period when Farage was aged 13 to 18.

Denials and Shifting Positions

The political figure has denied that anything he did was "directly" racist or antisemitic, and has suggested the former classmates were being untruthful.

Critics have highlighted that Farage has not managed to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism outright in his responses.

They also cite his inability to sanction a fellow Reform MP, a MP, after she expressed views about the number of ethnic minorities she saw in television commercials. She later apologised for the statements.

“Nigel Farage’s shifting account about his behaviour to his Jewish classmates [is] not credible, to say the least,” Hermer commented.

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

Call for Leadership

“If he wants to be seen as a credible figure for high office, he has to confront the concerns of the Jewish community, and apologise to the those he has clearly deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer concluded.

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

In a other comments, Rachel Reeves said Farage should “make a statement” if he wanted to be considered a true statesman.

“It speaks volumes how very little he has to say, and the very careful language that both you and I would identify as being written in a specific manner to say something, but also avoid saying certain things,” she said.

Legal Letters and Later Statements

In legal letters before the release of the report, Farage’s legal team claimed that “the allegation that Mr Farage ever was involved in, approved of, or led this behaviour is strongly rejected”.

Farage later appeared to change his explanation in an appearance, remarking: “Have I said things 50 years ago that you could see as being banter, you could interpret in a today's standards today in a certain manner? Perhaps.”

He said that he had “never directly really tried to go and upset anybody”. Farage afterwards put out a further comment: “I can tell you unequivocally that I did not say the things that have been published aged 13, so long ago.”