English defence league

The party’s finally over for Nigel Farage

From our UK edition

Nigel Farage was never even an MP, but Michael Crick argues convincingly that he is one of the top five most significant politicians of the past half century. Without him we might still be in the EU. All political careers supposedly end in failure, but maybe his didn’t. As with Boris Johnson (whom he resembles in many ways), Farage’s bluff, bonhomous public image is misleading. He is far more ruthless than he appears. Many of those close to him believe that his air crash on polling day in 2010 changed his personality. He was in a two-seater plane towing a banner saying ‘Vote Ukip’ when the banner wrapped itself round the rudder and the plane nose-dived to the ground.

Why is Tommy Robinson banned from America?

What does Tommy Robinson, reformed soccer hooligan and English nationalist, have in common with Daniel Pipes, unreformed policy wonk and president of the pro-Israel Middle East Forum? Islam, that’s what. Not that Robinson and Pipes are joining the Sons of the Prophet. Rather, they’re joining forces against Islamist influence in their societies, and against two related, and perhaps more serious problems: the stifling of debate about Islamism and immigration, and how unaccountable social media companies censor the opinions they dislike, even if those opinions have broken no law. On Wednesday, Pipes and the MEF hosted British speakers for a panel in Washington, DC on ‘de-platforming’. The location was kept secret, for security reasons.

tommy robinson stephen yaxley-lennon