Nigel Farage challenges Sir Keir Starmer 'to a fight' over antisemitism claim

Nigel Farage challenges Sir Keir Starmer 'to a fight' over antisemitism claim
Georgia Pearce

By Georgia Pearce


Published: 28/02/2024

- 21:06

Nigel Farage has hit back at Sir Keir Starmer’s claim at PMQs that he had made anti-Jewish remarks, saying his comments were “quite the reverse” and challenged him to “a fight on antisemitism”.

Speaking on GB News, Farage said: “I’d just landed on the overnight flight from Miami and PMQs started at midday and I assumed that what Sir Keir Starmer would do is go on the Lee Anderson story. Why? Because that splits the party opposite.

“Some members of Parliament for the Conservatives think he went way too far. Others think his suspension is ridiculous and electorally bad news.

“But no, he didn't do that. He wanted, for some reason, to talk about me. I think somebody might be slightly worried.

“Here's the point: back in 2015 Labour benefited hugely from UKIP taking Tory votes. But from there after actually, we were really, really hurting Labour and hurting them in a really big way.

“Four million Labour voters voted Brexit. Yes, the very same Brexit that you, Mr Starmer, wanted to overturn and force us into a second referendum.

“When he says I agree with the basic premise of Enoch Powell’s ‘rivers of blood’ speech. Well, the basic premise was that uncontrolled mass immigration would lead to divided societies in our cities that became unrecognisable, and that that could lead to conflict.

“Have a look at what happened with the intimidation of Members of Parliament last week and have a look at the fact, Sir Keir, that there are many parts of our major cities in England that are frankly unrecognisable. And millions of your voters know that.

“To say that I bemoaned the influence of the Jewish lobby - no, quite the reverse. I said the Jewish community in North America had been massively successful in law, in business.

“And yes, they did campaign for what they wanted, they did it within the law, they did it quite successfully but I was never a subscriber to the madcap conspiracy theory that the Jews run the world.

“I'll tell you who was: yes, Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader that you supported. Yes, Jeremy Corbyn.

“You went to a conference, Sir Keir, where there was a Palestinian flag on the chair of every Labour MP…

“I tell you what, if you want to have a fight with me over anti-Semitism: any day of the week.”

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