Mark Francois in heated rant after Lord Hermer's 'despicable' Nazi comments - 'My father fought for this country!'

Mark Francois told GB News: "What the Attorney General, the Government's senior law officer, has said is not clumsy.

"He knew full well what he was saying. He knew exactly the point he was trying to make, to seek to infer that anyone who opposes the idea of leaving the UK is somehow a Nazi is not clumsy.

"It is utterly beneath contempt. A man with that legal education should know better. And yes, I am furious.

"My father was on a minesweeper at D-Day. He fought the Nazis. So to have the Government's senior law officer throw out that slur because the Government are on the back foot over the Human Rights Act is despicable."

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Lord Hermer sparked the controversy during a speech at the Royal United Services Institute, where he warned against Britain abandoning "the constraints of international law in favour of raw power".

The Attorney General specifically targeted Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch's calls to review remaining with the European Court of Human Rights, describing such positions as a "siren song" that could be heard "in the Palace of Westminster, not to mention the press".

He drew parallels with "realist" jurists in Germany from the early 1930s, "most notably Carl Schmitt, whose central thesis was in essence the claim that state power is all that counts, not law".

Lord Hermer referenced how "far-sighted individuals rebuilt and transformed the institutions of international law" following the experience of what happened after 1933, when Adolf Hitler rose to power as German Chancellor.

Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick condemned the Attorney General's remarks as "appalling", saying it was disgraceful that Lord Hermer would "insinuate those who think we should leave the ECHR are like the Nazis".

Jenrick drew comparisons to previous Labour tactics, stating: "David Lammy tried that disgusting smear with Brexiteers and it didn't work for him - it won't work for Hermer either. It seems Labour haven't learned a thing."

Reform UK also criticised the comments, with the party suggesting Lord Hermer was "unfit to be Attorney General" following his controversial comparison.

The backlash extended beyond opposition parties, with Conservative MPs demanding accountability from Labour's most senior legal adviser over what they characterised as an inappropriate political attack disguised as legal commentary.

Lord Hermer was forced to issue a partial apology following mounting pressure from across the political spectrum, with his spokesman acknowledging that "his choice of words was clumsy and regrets having used this reference".

However, the Attorney General maintained that he "rejects the characterisation of his speech by the Conservatives", stopping short of a full retraction.