Keir Starmer takes apart Nigel Farage at PMQs for exploiting Henry Nowak’s murder to create ‘grievance and division’

Prime Minister Keir Starmer slammed Reform UK leader Nigel Farage during Prime Minister’s Questions earlier today, for exploiting the horrific murder of Henry Nowak in order to create ‘grievance and division’.

Farage has been widely condemned for using the murder of 18-year-old Nowak, who was stabbed to death by Vickrum Digwa, 23, in Southampton in December last year, to claim that there is two-tier policing in the UK.

Digwa told police that Nowak had attacked him and removed his turban. The court found that Digwa lied.

Nowak was handcuffed by police as he said he couldn’t breathe and that he had been stabbed. A police officer is heard asking him where he had been stabbed and then saying: “I don’t think you have mate”.

Hampshire police have apologised and the force’s Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones described the incident as a “national tragedy”.

Farage called for the public to respond with cold rage, despite Henry’s family saying that they did not want his murder to be used to “create further hatred, division or tension.”

Farage used PMQs earlier today to once more claim that the country was living under two-tier policing and called for an end to it. He also highlighted the riots in Southampton last night which he refused to condemn.

Starmer replied: “I don’t believe there is two-tier policing in this country. I’m really shocked that he pretends to have respect for Henry’s family and then acts in this way.

“A grieving family have asked us not to respond in the way the leader of Reform has responded, they’ve asked us not to. They have lost their son in the most appalling circumstances, they make a simple plea of us as human beings to please not exploit that, that is their plea to us.”

He went on to add: “His response has been to appeal for rage, rage that’s his response to a father who has lost his son and asked for that not to happen. Exploiting this tragedy to create grievance and division would be wrong in any circumstances but to do it when the family are expressly saying please don’t is unforgivable.

“It shows exactly who he is.”