Nigel Farage has been accused of stirring up online conspiracy theories and was called “Tommy Robinson in a suit” over comments he made about the Southport stabbings.
The Reform leader and new Clacton MP posted a video on X on Tuesday afternoon – before riots broke out – questioning the accuracy of the police’s assessment that Monday’s knife attack was not terror related.
Three young girls died in the attack north of Liverpool, while eight other children suffered stab wounds. Five are in a critical condition alongside two adults who are also critically injured.
Latest Southport stabbings updates
On Tuesday evening, a protest turned violent outside a Southport mosque after false online accusations the attacker was a Muslim refugee who came from Syria on a small boat last year.
Police said they believe the group were English Defence League (EDL) supporters and many had come from outside Merseyside.
Ahead of the protest, Mr Farage said in a video: “I wonder whether the truth is being held from us, I don’t know.”
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He speculated about whether the stabbing suspect was being monitored by security services.
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Brendan Cox, husband of murdered MP Jo Cox, said the remarks were “right out of the Trump playbook” and make him “nothing better than a Tommy Robinson in a suit”.
Anti-Islam campaigner Robinson founded the far-right EDL and led it until 2013.
“It is beyond the pale to use a moment like this to spread your narrative and to spread your hatred, and we saw the results on Southport’s streets last night,” Mr Cox told BBC Radio Four.
Robinson posted a video online on Tuesday, saying: “None of us are feeling safe in our own country, in our own towns.”
He accused the government and police of “endangering our country” and claimed they care more about people coming to the UK from other countries “than British children”.
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In an interview with the PA news agency following Mr Cox’s remarks, Mr Farage maintained his position.
He insisted he had “merely expressed a sense of sadness and concern that is being felt by absolutely everybody I know – ‘what the hell is going on?'”
Referring to other recent incidents, he said it is “quite legitimate to ask questions”.
He told PA: “I think it’s perfectly reasonable to ask what is happening to law and order in our country.
“And who are the perpetrators? Why? Very legitimate questions I was asking, and to conflate that with EDL (English Defence League) or anybody else, frankly, it’s desperate stuff.”
Mr Farage said of Mr Cox’s comments comparing him to Robinson: “The comment is beneath contempt.”
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Labour MP Jess Phillips said Mr Farage could have asked questions about the incident in parliament on Tuesday “if he had bothered to turn up to parliament”.
“He didn’t turn up, he grifted instead,” she wrote on X.
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said the “disgraceful” rioting was fired up by “disrespectful” online theories.
Without referring to Mr Farage, she told ITV’s This Morning: “Speculation and some of the untruths that have been put around social media, not only is that creating tensions and fear in the community, but it’s disrespectful to family who maybe want those answers that haven’t got those answers.
“My plea is that we all need to step back and just wait and then that information will come but allow the police to do their work”.
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Former Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood accused Mr Farage of deliberately riling up tensions and called on him to delete his video on X and said he lost his brother to terrorism.
He wrote: “To ramp up hatred online by claiming the Southport attack was terrorist related (culminating in riots, a mosque damaged and 27 police injured) is not just reprehensible but needs addressing. Otherwise it will happen again.
“Disgusted how a sitting MP deliberately enflames tensions without any justification.
“Farage should delete this tweet.”
The 17-year-old suspect in the killings cannot be named for legal reasons due to his age.
He was born in Cardiff to Rwandan parents and is from the village of Banks, outside Southport.
The teenager remains in custody accused of murder and attempted murder.
