Nigel Farage: Reports Of Post-Trump Hate Crimes "Being Exaggerated"

14 November 2016, 17:21 | Updated: 22 November 2016, 07:44

Nigel Farage says that the reported rise in hate crimes in the wake of the Brexit vote and Donald Trump's win are being inflated by "people who can't accept...the world has changed".

"Don't think this stuff wasn't going on before our referendum or before Trump won," Nigel told Iain Dale.

"It's exactly what we had here after Brexit," the interim Ukip leader said. "There may be a little bit of truth in it but I think the whole thing frankly is being exaggerated by a group of people who just can't accept the result.

"There's some people who just don't get it. They just don't get that the world has changed."

"Do you think that some people are making up these incidents where they say they're being attacked verbally?" asked Iain. "They can't all be making it up surely."

"No," said Farage. "Of course if those cases happen that is absolutely wrong and bad. But don't think this stuff wasn't going on before our referendum or before Trump won."

Iain asked if the results of those votes legitimised abuse or hate crimes. "I don't buy that at all.

"America has got a huge black/white divide that I'm afraid has been getting bigger over the course of the last few years. I don't think the election of Trump is in any way a vindication for people to perform badly, nor is a Brexit vote that here."

Hear Farage's full interview with Iain below, including his pitch for a role as a Special Relationship go-between to help Theresa May and Donald Trump work together.