Reform UK Candidates Embroiled in Antisemitism Scandal: Calls for Urgent Vetting Overhaul as Election Approaches

Calls are mounting for Reform UK to dismiss two of its candidates who are accused of sharing conspiracy theories and content considered to be antisemitic, prompting additional scrutiny of the party's candidate selection procedures.

Political correspondent @realBenBloch

Saturday, June 29, 2024, 1:

Two parliamentary candidates from Reform UK have circulated content that has been described as "vile" and violating the globally accepted definition of antisemitism.

Members of the conservative party have historically posted content on social networks that supports Adolf Hitler, refutes the Holocaust, propagates conspiracy theories involving the Rothschild family and Jewish businessman George Soros, denies the existence of antisemitism, and equates the nation of Israel to Nazi Germany.

The revelation of these social media messages, documented in a report by the Campaign Against Antisemitism and confirmed by Sky News, further challenges the screening methods used by Reform UK before selecting these individuals as parliamentary candidates.

Reform UK head Nigel Farage has warned he may pursue legal and police measures against a screening company, Vetting.com. He claims the company was compensated £144,000 to perform background checks on candidates, yet "failed to deliver any work," and has accused the firm of political prejudice.

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The firm announced that the election was scheduled sooner than anticipated, leaving insufficient time for their automated systems to fully process the candidate details at hand, and they refuted any claims of political favoritism.

During this election season, accusations of antisemitism have also surfaced against candidates from various parties, notably the Green Party, where close to 20 of its electoral hopefuls were alleged to have disseminated antisemitic content on the internet.

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At that time, the party informed The Times that the accusations were considered "serious" and were being addressed accordingly. During the launch of the party's manifesto, co-leader Adrian Ramsay mentioned that certain candidates had been disqualified, stating: "As with any party, when concerns about a candidate come up, they are looked into. This investigation is conducted independently from the party leadership, which is a practice of sound governance."

In 2020, a report by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission identified significant shortcomings in leadership and flawed procedures for addressing antisemitism complaints within the Labour Party during the tenure of Jeremy Corbyn. The investigation determined that the party had engaged in "unlawful acts of harassment and discrimination."

Following the investigation, the Labour Party was placed under special measures, which were lifted in February 2023.

The Campaign Against Antisemitism expressed serious concerns in a statement regarding the social media posts made by Reform UK candidates, describing them as "incredibly troubling." The organization urged the party to reconsider its backing of these individuals.

A video titled 'World Defeated Wrong Enemy' was circulated online.

Antony Antoniou, who is running for Northampton North under the Reform UK party, posted content on his X (previously known as Twitter) profile that supported Adolf Hitler, spread conspiracy theories about Jewish financier George Soros backing covert schemes, and suggested that Soros, in collaboration with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, was linked to the Ebola virus outbreak in 2014.

Today, this X account is actively utilized to represent his candidacy for election under Reform UK, and the tweets were removed just before the publication of this story.

On June 3, 2016, Antoniou posted a hyperlink to a video titled "World Defeated The Wrong Enemy." The video’s description, archived by the Internet Archive, asserts that Hitler "sought only peace and never commanded the killing of any Jew."

The text also mentions the "predominantly Jewish-influenced mainstream media" which has consistently portrayed Hitler negatively, and discusses how the so-called Jew World Order has influenced legislation in 16 European nations, restricting freedom of speech concerning topics related to Judaism, Hitler, and the Holocaust.

At the start of the year, on January 2, he shared a tweet directing people to a website featuring a collection of Hitler's speeches from 1921 to 1941. This website posits that Hitler had predicted the societal conflicts facing modern Europe, and encourages visitors to reflect on the idea that the groups deceiving the public currently are the same ones that did so in the past.

Adolf Hitler ruled as the authoritarian leader of Nazi Germany from 1933 to his death by suicide in 1945. He orchestrated and managed the deliberate genocide of six million Jews from various parts of Europe, following his prolonged promotion of antisemitic ideologies in Germany.

Antoniou circulated numerous links promoting conspiracy theories about the Rothschild family and Mr. Soros, featuring antisemitic narratives about sinister Jewish power or manipulation. He also distributed a link that associates Mr. Soros and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation with Ebola.

In August 2016, he posted a video created by conspiracy theorist David Icke. The video controversially alleged that the Rothschilds and others in a purported Zionist secret society manipulatively used the Nazi persecution of Jews in Germany for some unspecified advantage.

Icke has supported the discredited antisemitic text, the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, which became popular among America's far-right in the 1950s, and has spread conspiracy theories regarding Jewish domination. He rejects claims of being antisemitic.

Between 2015 and 2019, several tweets circulated that promoted articles claiming covert and malevolent influence by the Rothschild family and George Soros. These posts also propagated theories about a "New World Order" and purported plans by Israel to dominate the entire Middle East.

Despite Antoniou posting all the material on his X profile, he did not explicitly support any of it with his own comments. Yet, one specific post titled "Rothschild owned & controlled banks" seemed to connect to a WordPress website under his name, which has now been removed, and which he has disclaimed any responsibility for.

In an interview with Sky News, Antoniou explained that he once managed the account as a "news blog," linking it to automated feeds that posted either "historical" materials that captured his interest or content he found "abhorrent."

"He claimed, "I definitely didn't know about those tweets. I didn't post them myself. I'm not even familiar with much of the content that was shared. All I understand is that it involved RSS feeds distributing news."

He likened his role to that of a journalist or documentary filmmaker, stating, "I do not regret exposing terrible realities to the public."

He maintained that the messages were generated by an automated system and clarified that he does not support the content. Furthermore, he emphasized that the opinions conveyed through his account do not represent his own beliefs "in any manner or form."

Claims of antisemitism within the Labour Party dismissed as a 'smokes

Jacqui Harris, representing Reform UK in the Kenilworth and Southam election, engaged with several social media posts that equated current-day Israel with Nazi Germany. These posts originated from an X account that no longer exists, however, they have been archived online by the Internet Archive.

On January 28, 2019, the day following Holocaust Memorial Day, she responded to Boris Johnson's tweet commemorating the occasion by stating that Israeli Jews are acting in ways akin to the Nazis.

She expressed: "In this period of recalling the atrocities of Auschwitz – it appears those who suffered greatly in the past have now forgotten their own pain and are mistreating others today! Observe their actions towards the innocent people in Gaza."

While it is entirely valid to critique the policies of Israel, just as one might critique any nation, labeling it as akin to Nazi Germany falls under the definition of antisemitism by the widely acknowledged International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.

On March 3, Harris expressed agreement on Twitter with a comment suggesting that the accusations of antisemitism leveled at Jeremy Corbyn were a "false flag, likely orchestrated by Mossad/CIA" [referring to the intelligence agencies of Israel and the United States].

On December 15, 2019, she showed her agreement with and shared a tweet stating: "Trump campaigned with the motto 'America First' – however, his decisions throughout the past three years have evidently shown his priorities are 'Israel first' #Puppet".

The hyperlink led to an article asserting that "All reliable, unbiased, and factual proof confirms that Israel and the United States orchestrated the 9/11 attacks. However, the US mainstream media, which is influenced by Zionist interests, consistently overlooks this evidence."

Harris, formerly a Conservative Party council member, faced suspension in 2019 due to accusations of antisemitism, from which she was subsequently exonerated. She experienced another suspension in 2020.

She did not reply to Sky News when they asked for her comment.

Reform 'ought to reconsider backing for these candidates'

A representative from the Campaign Against Antisemitism expressed concern: "We've uncovered some disturbing findings related to the Reform UK candidates. Their histories include spreading myths about the Rothschilds and Israel's influence over U.S. leaders, denying antisemitism, likening Israel to Nazi Germany, and promoting the great replacement theory commonly linked to extremist right-wing ideology. The content of their social media posts is abhorrent and clearly violates the International Definition of Antisemitism."

"These nominees face significant inquiries. It's evident that the Reform Party must reconsider its backing of these individuals."

A representative from Vetting.com stated: "A while back, we reached out to all the prominent political parties in the UK to propose our automated background checking services. We were thrilled when Reform invited us to assist them.

The general consensus was that the election would take place in the Fall, allowing us the Summer to finish this project.

Due to the requirement for candidate approval and the necessity for essential personal information such as birth dates, our automated system could not process the candidates from Reform with the data available at the time it was submitted.

"We have no plans to engage in public legal battles, and we extend our best regards to Reform as they transform the political scene in the UK."

"Since 2022, Mr. Bloom has had no affiliations with the UK Conservative Party and maintains a position of political neutrality."

Reform UK has not replied to a request for a statement.

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The individuals running for election in Northampton North include:

Antony Antoniou, Reform UK

Eishar Kaur Bassan, representing the Green Party

Dan Bennett, from the Conservative Party

Paul Clark, Freelance

Christopher Gordon Leggett, representing the Liberal Democrats

Khalid Razzaq, member of the Workers Party of Great Britain

Lucy Rigby, member of the Labour Party

The individuals running for office in Kenilworth and Southam include:

Paul Richard Charles De'Ath, member of the UK Independence Party (UKIP)

Alix Dearing, representing the Green Party

Nicholas Robert Blunderbuss Green, from The Official Monster Raving Loony Party

Jacqui Harris, representing Reform UK

Name: Cat Price, representing the

Jenny Wilkinson, representing the Liberal Democrats

Jeremy Wright, a member of the

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