Nigel Farage, leader of the anti-immigration Reform UK party, delivered a fiery address from a field this week, calling for 'pure cold rage' in response to the fatal stabbing of a white teenager, Henry Nowak, in December 2025. The 18-year-old was killed by a Sikh man with a ceremonial knife, and police allegedly handcuffed the dying boy after believing the attacker's false claims of racial abuse. Footage shows Nowak uttering 'I can't breathe' as his last words.
Farage compared the tragedy to the killing of George Floyd, aiming to rally supporters and win back those who have defected to the new far-right group Restore Britain. Founded four months ago by former Reform member Rupert Lowe, Restore Britain claims over 96,000 members and 13 councillors, mostly ex-Reform. The party is positioning itself as more hardline on immigration than Reform UK.
The upcoming by-election in Makerfield, Greater Manchester, scheduled for June 18, is seen as a pivotal test. Labour candidate Andy Burnham seeks to return to Parliament, but polls show him only narrowly ahead of Reform UK's Robert Kenyon (43% to 40%). Restore Britain's Rebecca Shepherd is polling at 7%, potentially splitting the far-right vote.
According to Dr. Georgios Samaras of King's College London, Reform UK is perceived as 'too soft' by far-right extremists, creating a market for Restore Britain. He described Lowe and his party as 'an expression of neo-Nazism,' noting that their narratives avoid overt Nazi symbolism but promote similar ideas.
Restore Britain's manifesto promises 'the most ambitious programme of mass deportations ever seen in Britain,' including deporting legal migrants who claim benefits or cannot speak English. The party also promotes the 'Great Replacement' conspiracy theory, claiming native Britons will become a minority by 2070.
Experts link the rise of far-right sentiment to socioeconomic deprivation and scapegoating of immigrants and Muslims. Anti-Muslim hate incidents in England reached a record 6,313 in 2024, a 165% increase from 2022. Meanwhile, net migration has fallen sharply to 171,000, down from 331,000.
The rift between Farage and Lowe has deepened, with Elon Musk endorsing Restore Britain. Farage accused Musk of trying to split the right wing. However, analysts warn that Restore Britain could peel off enough votes to prevent Reform UK from forming a government after the next general election, even if it becomes the largest party.
Source: www.aljazeera.com