Richard Tice blasted for ‘shameful’ response to Nigel Farage racism allegations

More than a dozen former classmates from Mr Farage’s time at Dulwich College, in south London, alleged that Mr Farage made pro-Hitler comments and joked about gas chambers

Richard Tice has been blasted for a “shameful” response to the Nigel Farage schoolboy racism allegations after he claimed they were “made-up twaddle”.

The Deputy Leader of Reform UK dismissed the claims from a director whose family fled the Nazis, and suggested he had a “political axe to grind” and didn’t want Mr Farage to be PM.

More than a dozen former classmates from Mr Farage’s time at Dulwich College, in south London, alleged that Mr Farage made pro-Hitler comments, joked about gas chambers, and put someone in detention for the colour of their skin.

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Mr Farage has dismissed the claims, from decades ago – and insisted he would never racially abuse people in a “hurtful or insulting way”. Reform UK has categorically denied the claims and claimed the allegations are part of a smear campaign against the party leader.

This includes claims from award winning director and producer Peter Ettedgui, who was 13 at the time, who told The Guardian that the Reform leader would tell him “Hitler was right”, or “Gas them” before adding a hiss to replicate the sound of the gas chambers.

In a car crash interview, Mr Tice was asked if he thought saying to a Jewish person ‘Hitler was right’ is direct racial abuse.

He said: “Yes I do, and I can’t believe anybody would have said that. This is all made up twaddle by people who don’t want Nigel to be Prime Minister of this country. Funny enough they didn’t remember this three years ago, six years ago”.

Host Emma Barnett pointed out they did, with Mr Ettedgui telling a journalist about it years ago. ”

Mr Tice continued: “This is made up nonsense by someone who’s got a politically biased motive. And let me tell you, no one has stood up against antisemitism more than Nigel and I, we were the ones who immediately after October 7th said we were very worried about the protests.

“I think this is made up twaddle by a whole bunch of people, I think these people have a political axe to grind, and every week the voters are going out in by-elections and they’re voting for Reform because they’re not buying into this left-wing anti-Nigel narrative”

Responding, Labour peer Lord Katz, the former chair of Jewish Labour, said: “Reform dep leader Richard Tice just claimed no one has done more than Nigel Farage to tackle antisemitism, in the same breath rubbishing claims of antisemitism vs Farage from a Jewish man as twaddle. Just shameful.”

Anna Turley MP, Chair of the Labour Party, said: “It took serious courage for the victims of Nigel Farage’s alleged racism to come forward and tell their story. It’s utterly deplorable that Richard Tice has dismissed this and suggested they are lying, despite Farage himself refusing to offer a categorical denial and saying he couldn’t remember everything that happened at school.

“Instead of repeatedly changing their story, Nigel Farage and Richard Tice should urgently apologise to those bravely raising these serious concerns. Reform want to drag our politics to a dark place and it shows they are not fit for high office.”

It comes after around 20 people claimed they were either victims of or witnessed the Reform UK leader’s offensive behaviour when he was aged 13 to 18.

Another former pupil, who was not named, described being in a youth organisation called the CCF, during which they claimed Farage had taught songs about gassing Jews.

Patrick Neylan, 61, an editor, who was in the year below Farage, also recalled the singing of the “gas ’em” song on CCF camps. Tim France, 61, was in the same year as Mr Farage and claimed he would “regularly” perform the Nazi “Seig heil” salute.

Last month, Keir Starmer accused Mr Farage of being “spineless” when it comes to dealing with racism. And last week, the PM said Mr Farage should apologise following accusations of racism at his top private school.