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The United Kingdom's top law officer, one of the most senior Jewish ministers, has urged the Reform UK leader to issue an apology to school contemporaries who claim he racially abused them during their time at school.

Hermer said that Farage had "undoubtedly deeply hurt" many people, based on their accounts of his actions as a youth. He commented that the politician's "constantly changing" denials had been difficult to believe.

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

Further Testimonies Come to Light

A series of inquiries last month detailed the statements of over a dozen one-time schoolmates of Farage from Dulwich College.

One, a former pupil, recalled that a 13-year-old Farage "would sidle up to me and growl: ‘Hitler was right’ or ‘gas them’, at times making a long hiss to imitate the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

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

“He approached a pupil with two tall mates and targeted anyone looking ‘different’,” the individual said. “That included me on three separate times; inquiring where I was from, and gesturing, saying: ‘That’s the way back,’ to wherever you replied you were from.”

Since then, additional individuals have come forward; approximately twenty people have now claimed they were either subject to or saw deeply offensive conduct by Farage.

The incidents they recounted relate to the period when Farage was aged 13 to 18.

Changing Stories

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

Observers have noted that Farage has neglected to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism in a wider sense in his denials.

They also reference his inability to reprimand a party member, Sarah Pochin, after she complained about the number of ethnic minorities she saw in adverts. She later expressed regret for the remarks.

“His constantly changing story about his behaviour to his Jewish classmates [is] unconvincing, to say the least,” Hermer stated.

He went on to say: “Suggesting that a group of people have all forgotten the same things about his offensive behaviour simply isn’t credible."

Call for Leadership

“If he wishes to be seen as a legitimate candidate for the top job, he urgently needs address the fears of the Jewish people, and apologise to the many people he has obviously deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer stated.

“Bigotry in all its forms is completely opposed to the standards of this country and we should not let it to ever become legitimised in politics.”

In a different discussion, the Chancellor said Farage should “say something” if he wanted to look like a genuine leader.

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

Formal Denials and Subsequent Comments

In lawyers' communications prior to the release of the investigation, Farage’s representatives stated that “the suggestion that Mr Farage ever was involved in, condoned, or led racist or antisemitic behaviour is categorically denied”.

Farage later altered his explanation in an interview, saying: “Have I said things 50 years ago that you could view as being banter, you could interpret in a today's standards today in some way? Yes.”

He said that he had “never directly really tried to go and hurt anybody”. Farage later put out a new statement: “I can tell you definitely that I did not say the things that have been published aged 13, nearly 50 years ago.”