Man charged with throwing a milkshake at Brexit Party's Farage
British police have charged a 32-year-old man with assault after pro-Brexit politician Nigel Farage was hit with a milkshake while campaigning in the European Parliament election. Northumbria Police said Tuesday that Paul Crowther had been charged with common assault and criminal damage over the incident in Newcastle, northeast England. Farage was left with milkshake dripping down his suit during a walkabout in the city on Monday. Crowther said he threw the banana-and-salted caramel Five Guys shake to protest the politician's "bile and racism."
- World
- Reuters
- Published Date: 03:04 | 21 May 2019
- Modified Date: 03:04 | 21 May 2019
A man has been charged with common assault and criminal damage after a milkshake was thrown over Nigel Farage, the leader of Britain's Brexit Party, police said on Tuesday.
Farage, one of the leading figures in the campaign for Britain to leave the European Union, was covered in the milkshake at a campaign event for the European Parliament elections in the northern English city of Newcastle.
He is the latest anti-EU figure to be doused with the drink by protesters ahead of Thursday's vote.
Northumbria Police said they had now charged a 32-year-old man, Paul Crowther, over the incident. He is due to appear in court later on Tuesday.
"At around 1 p.m., a 55-year-old man had a milkshake thrown at him in the city centre," police said in a statement. "A 32-year-old man was detained at the scene and arrested by police."
Farage's newly-formed pro-Brexit party is predicted by opinion polls to win the most support in Britain at the elections later this week, promising to take the country out of the European Union without a deal.
"Sadly some remainers have become radicalised, to the extent that normal campaigning is becoming impossible," Farage tweeted after the incident. "For a civilised democracy to work you need the losers consent, politicians not accepting the referendum result have led us to this."
Farage, a 55-year-old former commodities broker, played an instrumental role in persuading Britain's mainstream political parties to hold a referendum on leaving the European Union in 2016, and then convincing voters to back Brexit during the subsequent campaign.
Britain remains deeply divided over the issue and parliament has been unable to agree when, how or even if the country should leave the bloc.