To hear him talk, Nigel Farage isn’t a big fan of hypocrisy. However, his response to two sets of riots in the UK – 13 years apart – shows that he is now taking a very different approach to widespread civil disruption across the country.
What sparked the 2011 riots?
At the start of the previous decade, when Mark Duggan was shot dead by police, huge riots erupted in London, bringing the capital city to a standstill. The disturbances spread across the country, lasting for the best part of a week.
After recalling MPs from their summer recess, David Cameron vowed to come down like a ton of bricks on the protesters. Sure enough, a swift round of arrests and convictions were secured. But some commentators believed that the army should have been called in.
What did Nigel Farage say about rioters in the past?
One of them was none other than Nigel Farage. The former UKIP leader, now doing his ‘everyman’ routine in charge of Reform, was incredibly vocal on the subject back in 2011 – and he lashed out at ‘opportunistic criminals’ who put a tremendous strain on the police.
“This has got nothing to do with politics. It is opportunistic crime, taking place on a massive scale. Criticise the police, but there simply aren’t enough of them to deal with hundreds of outbreaks of violence. Millions of Londoners are terrified.”
“I don’t want the state to interfere with our lives, but frankly, to protect the innocent majority, the government needs to take radical action today. We must put the army on the streets, to allow the police to get on the job, and protect our citizens.” | Nigel Farage, August 2011
Nigel Farage swaps hardline stance for ‘sympathy’ towards rioters
But, fast forward 13 years, and Mr. Farage is now showing remarkable restraint in the face of looting, rioting, and destruction returning to our streets. Many of the far-right hooligans perpetrating disorder have openly voiced their support for Brexit’s biggest cheerleader.
His latest interjection came on Thursday, when he addressed Keir Starmer directly via video. He actually shifted the blame from the far-right, and claimed that there would be ‘worse to come’ in the weeks ahead. That’s not exactly ‘protecting our citizens’, is it?
Twitter/X users have kept the receipts
There has been nothing from the Reform leader in the last 72 hours, where far-right thugs have burnt down libraries, smashed-up store fronts, and in some cases, attacked black people in broad daylight. The change in tone has not gone unnoticed by social media users…