Kmflett's Blog

Nigel Farage (b 3 April 1964) on the history of the 1970s.

Nigel Farage has been quoted in the Sunday Telegraph (24^th August) to the effect that the British economy is in as bad a state now as it was in the 1970s. The Labour Government 1974-79 had to get a bail out from the IMF (with resulting cuts in spending), something the Telegraph (but no one else) thinks is imminent in 2025.

Between 1975 and 1982 Farage was at Dulwich College, a public school, and he was 12-13 years old during the IMF episode. He clearly had little direct insight at the time, but he might of course have researched the 1970s since. However there is scant evidence that Farage, books and research are in any way connected.

Farage, or much more likely the Reform media office, told the Telegraph:

It is the 1970s all over again…we had terrible times in the 1970s, but at least we were fairly united as a country, as a culture. This time we have bad economic times here, worse coming, in a nation that is bitterly divided’

From this we can conclude one of two things. Either Farage has a dreadful memory (he is 61, it does happen) or he is engaging in his trademark dissembling.

As someone who was politically active in the 1970s and can remember it, the decade saw the rise of the fascist National Front, arguably forerunners of Farage, stirring up hate, leading to racist attacks and murders. Opposition from the Anti-Nazi League and others saw that particular far right wave decline.

We know from Farage’s former Headmaster at Dulwich that the young Nigel was at least sympathetic to those trying to stir up division, so perhaps he did learn something in his school years.