Nigel Farage has urged the government to outlaw face coverings across Britain following migrant boat demonstrations in Dover and Portsmouth, where hundreds of protesters concealed their identities.
The Reform UK leader branded masks and balaclavas a “menace,” arguing they are used to threaten and intimidate members of the public, regardless of whether they are worn by far-right groups or hard-left activists.
Farage said it would once have been “unimaginable” to see an ordinary person feel compelled to cross the street simply to avoid someone whose face was hidden.
His comments followed major disruption at Britain’s busiest ferry port on Saturday morning, when a large group of men dressed in black and wearing balaclavas brought traffic around Dover to a halt.
The anti-migrant protesters blocked routes in and out of the south coast port while chanting slogans including “stop the boats” and “enough is enough.”
And overnight on Sunday, official vehicles were damaged and police officers were injured during a stand-off with masked protesters in the Eastney area of Portsmouth after the passengers on a migrant boat were brought ashore.
Hard-Right organisation Patriot Platform – run by convicted attempted kidnapper Daniel Thomas – claimed responsibility for the demonstrations.
Mr Farage told The Telegraph: ‘Now, I’m all for the protest – plenty to protest about – but seriously this is not the way to go about it.
‘Let’s be clear, face coverings are a menace. Whether it is a heavy-duty balaclava worn by a gang member or the dark mask of ‘Antifa’ extremists, their purpose is to bully and intimidate.’
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has called for all face coverings to be banned following protests in Dover and Portsmouth
Hundreds of anti-migrant protestors took to the streets of Dover on Saturday
He added: ‘Reform UK is calling for a ban on all full-face coverings in public spaces. No ifs, no buts. And yes, that includes religious ones too.
‘Because a free and open society depends fundamentally on trust. That trust is built on a simple, ancient social contract: I show you my face, you show me yours. When you strip that away, the entire fabric of public safety and mutual trust begins to fray.’
In a fiery interview on Saturday night, Farage dubbed the protest ‘disgusting’, insisting that ‘nobody in any political protest, left or right, should be appearing in balaclavas’.
Thomas, an associate of right-wing activist Tommy Robinson who uses the nickname Danny Tommo, confronted Reform UK’s Zia Yusuf in Portsmouth and said the party leader should be ‘careful with his words’.
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Only a day after hard-Right protestors caused havoc in Dover, several hundred took to Portsmouth in a bid to stop 140 asylum seekers being transported to an immigration centre.
The migrants had earlier arrived on a huge dinghy which set sail from Calais, with the French coastguard shadowing the vessel until British lifeboats took over.
The demonstration, believed to have been organised by Patriot Platform, was described as ‘intimidating’
Protesters, some of whom had waded into the sea earlier in the day, said they were prepared to remain throughout the night to block any routes out of the city, leading to clashes with police as riot officers were deployed.
Eastney is just four miles from the Port of Portsmouth and the HM Naval Base, home to six Royal Navy destroyers and its two flagship aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales.
In protest footage shared on social media, a riot officer appeared to be pushed from his motorbike as demonstrators, many wearing caps and hoods, shouted: ‘Shame on you.’
Further clips showed officers carrying shields ordering the crowd to ‘get back’ before pushing some protesters away from a nearby police van.
The demonstrators remained in the area until almost midnight amid chaotic scenes and multiple clashes with officers near the waterfront.
The chairman of the Hampshire Police Federation said seven police officers ‘were assaulted’ during an anti-migrant demonstration in Portsmouth.
Spencer Wragg told LBC: ‘We’ve had several officers that were assaulted, obviously during that incident. The number is seven officers.
‘Thankfully, there’s no major injuries, but we’ve seen a plethora of different injuries caused in different ways. There’s been a lot of criminal damage as well as the assault on my colleagues.
‘What we saw was people breaking the law, assaulting officers, causing damage to property, and I’m sure for those residents in that area, that must be quite a frightening experience.’
Asked if any arrests were made, Mr Wragg said: ‘There were no arrests made on the night.
‘Obviously, as you would expect, and there’s an ongoing investigation, and I’ll anticipate there will be arrests in the coming days and weeks.’