Reform will fund private prosecution after Manchester airport row, Farage announces | Politics | News

Nigel Farage has confirmed that Reform UK is pursuing a private prosecution against two men involved in a brawl with police at Manchester Airport earlier this year.

The high-profile row, which erupted in the airport’s Terminal 2 earlier this year and involved police officers and two Asian men, has sparked a huge controversy over allegations of misconduct and “dual policing”.

The incident reportedly began after the men confronted a passenger who allegedly racially abused their mother during a flight.

As the family left the airport, a confrontation with Greater Manchester Police ensued, which escalated into a physical altercation.

Video footage of the event, which was widely shared online, showed police officers restraining the men, with allegations that one officer used excessive force, and the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has since launched an investigation.

However, subsequent clips show that the two officers were attacked beforehand, leading to the arrest of four men, including Fahir Amaaz, 19, and Muhammad Amaad, 25, both brothers from Rochdale, along with two unnamed others.

All were taken into custody on the evening of the incident and later released on bail while investigations continued.

Mr Farage, writing in the Daily Telegraphsaid the party he leads has now taken matters into its own hands.

He said: “Despite compelling CCTV footage, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has not charged the two alleged attackers almost four months later. This is despite the fact that we notified them on October 7 that if they did not do their job, we would do it for them by pursuing private criminal charges against the attackers.

“This all seems inexplicable until you dig a little further. If the CPS wants to send a strong message it can do so, such as bringing swift charges and trials, based on CCTV footage, of those involved in disorder and rioting in the summer of 2024.

“This suited the Prime Minister, who had spoken publicly about his wish for people to be dealt with quickly and severely. The prison space was cleared to make room for people who were sentenced.”

However, he added: “With the incident at Manchester Airport, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating the officers’ self-defence actions following the brutal beating they suffered at the hands of the attackers.

“We at Reform UK will not stand for two-tier justice and two-tier policing.”

Mr Farage said Reform UK has engaged TM Eye Ltd, one of Britain’s leading private prosecutors, to take on the case. The company wrote to both GMP and CPS yesterday to get the ball rolling.

He added: “We have secured the funding to see this through. We also make it clear to the CPS that we will not tolerate our prosecution being hijacked and later dropped for political reasons.

“We at Reform will stand up for police officers even if the CPS and IOPC do not.”

A spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service said: “We are materially considering and providing advice in relation to a series of alleged criminal offenses at Manchester Airport in July this year.

“We are working with Greater Manchester Police and the Independent Office for Police Conduct as their investigation continues.”

Writing in the Times in August, Stephen Parkinson, director of public prosecutions, said: “Talking about a one-sided approach is unfounded.

“Those who need proof need only look at the violent and disorderly so-called ‘counter-protesters’ whom we charged and prosecuted with the same impartial professionalism as the gang they claimed to oppose.

“The CPS prosecutes people who break the law – regardless of their background or political beliefs. That is why we are independent of the government. It is central to who we are.”

He added: ‘Some may wonder why all crimes are not punished so strongly.

“Some cases take longer because they are complex. Not every crime is as obvious as pushing a burning garbage can at the police, or is captured on multiple body-worn cameras.

“Crimes such as rape and domestic violence often require more in-depth, specialist work to build a case and ultimately prove it – something we are working with police to do better.”