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The United Kingdom's attorney general, Richard Hermer, has urged Nigel Farage to apologise to school contemporaries who allege he targeted with racist abuse them during their time at school.

Hermer stated that Farage had "obviously deeply hurt" many people, according to their descriptions of his alleged conduct. He added that the politician's "evolving" explanations had been less than credible.

“In his defensive responses to legitimate questions, not once has Farage genuinely condemned antisemitism,” Hermer told a publication.

Fresh Claims Surface

A recent investigation last month outlined the statements of several ex-pupils 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 ‘send them to the gas chambers’, at times making a long hiss to imitate the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

Another minority ethnic pupil alleged that when he was about nine, he was singled out by a 17-year-old Farage.

“He walked up to a pupil flanked by two equally tall mates and targeted anyone looking ‘other’,” the person said. “That involved me on three separate times; questioning me where I was from, and gesturing, saying: ‘Go back that way,’ to any place you said you were from.”

After the story broke, more people have emerged; about 20 people have now stated they were either targets of or saw deeply offensive past behaviour by Farage.

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

Denials and Shifting Positions

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

Observers have noted that Farage has not managed to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism outright in his statements.

They also point to his failure to reprimand a fellow Reform MP, Sarah Pochin, after she complained about the number of people of colour she saw in adverts. She later said sorry for the comments.

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

He added: “Claiming that two dozen individuals have somehow misremembered the same things about his hurtful behaviour simply is not believable."

Demand for Accountability

“If he wishes to be seen as a legitimate candidate for high office, he has to confront the concerns of the Jewish people, and apologise to the those he has clearly deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer said.

“Racism in all its forms is anathema to the standards of this country and we must not permit it to ever become accepted in politics.”

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

“It speaks volumes how 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 communicate, but also dodge the issue,” she remarked.

Legal Letters and Later Statements

In lawyers' communications prior to the publication of the investigation, Farage’s lawyers asserted that “the allegation that Mr Farage ever was involved in, condoned, or led this behaviour is completely refuted”.

Farage later appeared to change his explanation in an interview, remarking: “Have I said things decades ago that you could see as being banter, you could interpret in a today's standards today in some way? Yes.”

He said that he had “not ever purposely really tried to go and harm anybody”. Farage later put out a further comment: “I can tell you categorically that I did not say the things that have been printed as a 13-year-old, nearly 50 years ago.”