{"id":2046514,"date":"2025-09-24T14:42:23","date_gmt":"2025-09-24T14:42:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2046514"},"modified":"2025-09-24T14:42:23","modified_gmt":"2025-09-24T14:42:23","slug":"farage-condemned-for-falsely-accusing-eastern-european-migrants-of-eating-swans-from-royal-parks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/farage-condemned-for-falsely-accusing-eastern-european-migrants-of-eating-swans-from-royal-parks\/","title":{"rendered":"Farage condemned for falsely accusing eastern European migrants of eating swans from royal parks"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"main\">\n<div class=\"hydrate-root sc-10wlkbs-0\" data-component=\"Newsletter\" data-loading=\"lazy\" data-theme-name=\"base\">\n<aside class=\"sc-y4bm30-0 jwWhkK newsletter-component sc-1ge0fwe-0\" data-newsletter-key=\"receiveTheView\">\n<div class=\"sc-y4bm30-2 kcLSBk\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-y4bm30-1 inRDZn\">\n<div class=\"sc-y4bm30-3\">\n<div class=\"sc-y4bm30-4 hfveGa\">\n<p><h3 class=\"sc-y4bm30-5 sc-y4bm30-6 fvoxRM dRzeRr\">Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox<\/h3>\n<h3 class=\"sc-y4bm30-5 sc-y4bm30-8 fvoxRM knvhy\">Get our free View from Westminster email<\/h3>\n<h3 class=\"sc-y4bm30-5 sc-y4bm30-7 fvoxRM kbCQAZ\">Get our free View from Westminster email<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<p><svg class=\"sc-eaj12q-0 hKcUSR sc-culv3z-0 eifaJK sc-1ix0cah-0 PYnPb sc-y4bm30-10 fUEDPX\"><use href=\"#600f53465147d717\"\/><\/svg><\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-y4bm30-2 kcLSBk sc-y4bm30-9 iQYNfz\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/static-assets\/images\/newsletters\/viewFromWestminster1_1.png\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"View from Westminster\" class=\"sc-1mc30lb-0 ggpMaE\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/topic\/nigel-farage\"\/><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/topic\/nigel-farage\">Nigel Farage<\/a> has been condemned for peddling false information and \u201cwild conspiracy theories\u201d after he falsely accused <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/uk\/this-britain\/police-baffled-by-stories-of-asylumseekers-barbecuing-the-queen-s-fowl-94852.html\">Romanians in Britain of eating swans<\/a> in parks in his latest attack on migrants living in the UK. <\/p>\n<p>The <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/uk\/politics\/reform-uk-ilr-immigration-policy-nigel-farage-b2831087.html\">Reform UK leader<\/a> claimed \u201cswans are being eaten in Royal Parks\u201d and said carp were being taken out of ponds \u201cby people who come from different cultures\u201d. <\/p>\n<p>Asked who he believes are eating Britain\u2019s swans, which are a protected species in the UK, <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/uk\/politics\/nigel-farage-ed-davey-trump-starmer-lib-dem-b2831888.html\">Mr Farage said<\/a>: \u201cPeople who come from countries where that\u2019s quite acceptable.\u201d <\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-awdjp1-2 cbpRGD sc-awdjp1-3 image align-center\">\n<figure class=\"sc-1cbdeug-0 cXcwgU\">\n<div data-gallery-length=\"2\" class=\"sc-awdjp1-0 ecQsjY\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/2025\/09\/24\/7\/21\/Nigel-Farage-on-LBC-xsclqwpd.jpeg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/2025\/09\/24\/7\/21\/Nigel-Farage-on-LBC-xsclqwpd.jpeg?quality=75&amp;width=320&amp;auto=webp 320w, https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/2025\/09\/24\/7\/21\/Nigel-Farage-on-LBC-xsclqwpd.jpeg?quality=75&amp;width=640&amp;auto=webp 640w\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Farage\u2019s comments about Romanians eating swans are an echo of the US president\u2019s warning that Haitian migrants were eating Americans\u2019 pets\" class=\"sc-1mc30lb-0 ggpMaE inline-gallery-btn\"\/><\/p>\n<p><button class=\"sc-1uf4o3q-0 dkRtZs inline-gallery-btn\" id=\"trigger-autogallery-7379\"><span class=\"sc-1uf4o3q-1 hwVecx\">open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"sc-1cbdeug-1 sc-1cbdeug-3 bpFomM hgzWpY\">Farage\u2019s comments about Romanians eating swans are an echo of the US president\u2019s warning that Haitian migrants were eating Americans\u2019 pets<span class=\"sc-1cbdeug-7 CXMrn\"> <!-- -->(<!-- -->Jordan Pettitt\/PA<!-- -->)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>And, asked by <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/topic\/lbc\">LBC<\/a>\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/topic\/nick-ferrari\">Nick Ferrari<\/a> whether eastern Europeans, Romanians and \u201cpeople like that\u201d were responsible, Mr Farage said: \u201cSo I believe.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>The Royal Parks charity quickly rejected Mr Farage\u2019s claim, saying: \u201cWe\u2019ve not had any incidents reported to us of people killing or eating swans in London\u2019s eight Royal Parks. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur wildlife officers work closely with the Swan Sanctuary to ensure the welfare of the swans across the parks.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Fizza Qureshi, chief executive of the Migrants\u2019 Rights Network, hit out at Mr Farage for \u201cregurgitating debunked stories\u201d and said his comments were \u201cridiculous, harmful and nothing new\u201d. <\/p>\n<p>She said: \u201cHe is regurgitating debunked stories that have resurfaced again and again, including way back in 2007 where migrants were accused of stealing swans. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat Nigel Farage\u2019s comments do show is his willingness to peddle disinformation from unverified social media and far-right organisations to deliberately whip up more hatred against migrants.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>She said the claim was \u201cnot only absurd but is utterly dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mr Farage\u2019s comments echo US President Donald Trump\u2019s claim that Haitian migrants are eating Americans\u2019 pets, with Labour MPs saying the Reform leader\u2019s latest remarks are another example of why he shouldn\u2019t be trusted. <\/p>\n<p>Clive Lewis told <em>The Independent<\/em>: &#8220;When a public figure begins to peddle wild conspiracy and grotesque exaggeration, from migrants eating swans to hinting at unknown harms from paracetamol, it reveals a troubling approach: deliberately feeding fear, confusion, and distrust.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Some will fall for those lies, but others will see through the smokescreen. If this man cannot be trusted on the simplest matters of health or truth, then how can he be trusted to run a country? We must ask: if he\u2019ll lie today, what will he lie about tomorrow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Andy McDonald, Labour MP for Middlesbrough and Thornaby East, said his comments are a \u201cdirect lift from the Trump song book and a deliberate attempt to inflame tensions in our communities\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe offers absolutely nothing about how to truly transform our economy for the benefit of the working class, but just scapegoats immigrants, votes down improved rights and protections of workers and the thousands of net zero jobs providing good secure employment, but vigorously defends extreme wealth and treats voters like idiots hoping he\u2019ll get away with it once again\u201d, he added. <\/p>\n<p>In a presidential debate last year, Mr Trump said: \u201cIn Springfield, they are eating the dogs. The people that came in, they are eating the cats. They\u2019re eating \u2013 they are eating the pets of the people that live there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>City authorities stressed that there was no evidence for the claim, with the US National Security Council spokesperson at the time dubbing it a \u201cdangerous conspiracy theory\u201d. <\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-awdjp1-2 cbpRGD sc-awdjp1-3 image align-center\">\n<figure class=\"sc-1cbdeug-0 cXcwgU\">\n<div data-gallery-length=\"2\" class=\"sc-awdjp1-0 hbNvVO\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/2025\/09\/24\/08\/TRUMP_89617.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/2025\/09\/24\/08\/TRUMP_89617.jpg?quality=75&amp;width=320&amp;auto=webp 320w, https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/2025\/09\/24\/08\/TRUMP_89617.jpg?quality=75&amp;width=640&amp;auto=webp 640w\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Farage also refused to condemn Donald Trump\u2019s remarks on drug safety\" class=\"sc-1mc30lb-0 ggpMaE inline-gallery-btn\"\/><\/p>\n<p><button class=\"sc-1uf4o3q-0 dkRtZs inline-gallery-btn\" id=\"trigger-autogallery-7380\"><span class=\"sc-1uf4o3q-1 hwVecx\">open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"sc-1cbdeug-1 sc-1cbdeug-3 bpFomM hgzWpY\">Farage also refused to condemn Donald Trump\u2019s remarks on drug safety<span class=\"sc-1cbdeug-7 CXMrn\"> <!-- -->(<!-- -->AP<!-- -->)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Mr Farage launched into his own allegation about swans being eaten in royal parks after being challenged over whether any evidence had been forthcoming for Mr Trump\u2019s claims.<\/p>\n<p>After the exchange, interviewer Mr Ferrari said: \u201cSo it\u2019s a similar story? They\u2019re eating our carp, they\u2019re eating our swans?\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Mr Farage said: \u201cI\u2019m not saying that, I\u2019m just putting it back as an argument.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>His comments came as the Reform leader also opened the door to a <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/topic\/donald-trump\">Donald Trump<\/a>-style re-evaluation of the safety of paracetamol in the UK. <\/p>\n<p>Asked about the US president linking the drug to autism \u2013 claims <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/health\/robert-f-kennedy-jr-trump-scientists-durham-university-nhs-b2831242.html\">UK experts have refuted<\/a> and condemned as \u201cfear mongering\u201d \u2013 Mr Farage said \u201cthat is an opinion he has\u2026 it\u2019s not one that I necessarily share\u201d. <\/p>\n<p>But Mr Farage added that \u201cthe science is never settled\u201d. He said: \u201cWhen it comes to science, I don\u2019t side with anybody, because the science is never settled and we should remember that.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Critics seized on Mr Farage\u2019s answers during the interview on drug safety, with Wes Streeting saying he has \u201cno idea and no backbone\u201d. <\/p>\n<p>The health secretary said: \u201cThis is a man whose health adviser claimed at Reform\u2019s conference that the Covid vaccine gave the royal family cancer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnti-science, anti-reason, anti-NHS. Farage is the snake oil salesman of British politics and it\u2019s time to stop buying his rubbish.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Helen Morgan said: \u201cNigel Farage wants to impose Trump\u2019s dangerous anti-science agenda here in the UK. Peddling this kind of nonsense is irresponsible and wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The latest row comes just days after Mr Farage was accused of using \u201cdodgy maths\u201d to back up his plan to <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/uk\/home-news\/nigel-farage-reform-rachel-reeves-tories-chris-philp-b2831282.html\">scrap the main route towards British citizenship <\/a>and deport tens of thousands of people who have legally settled in Britain. <\/p>\n<p>The Reform leader<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/uk\/home-news\/nigel-farage-reform-rachel-reeves-tories-chris-philp-b2831282.html\"> <\/a>said the current option of indefinite leave to remain \u2013 open to those who have lived and worked in Britain for five years \u2013 has \u201cbetrayed democracy\u201d and vowed to abolish it.<\/p>\n<p>Doubt was cast over <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/topic\/reform\"\/><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/uk\/politics\/nigel-farage-migration-indefinite-leave-to-remain-b2831323.html\">Mr Farage\u2019s claim<\/a> that savings from the policy would be \u201cconsiderably larger\u201d than the \u00a3230bn once suggested by the Centre for Policy Studies (CPS), despite the think tank having since said its figure should no longer be used.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Ben Brindle, a researcher at the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, questioned Mr Farage\u2019s statement that half of those who have migrated to the UK are not working.<\/p>\n<p>The Reform leader also said those from Hong Kong and Ukraine would not be exempt from the measures &#8211; before rowing back on it on Wednesday, telling LBC a special exemption would be made for people who come from those countries under plans to stop benefits being offered to migrants. <\/p>\n<p>In another instance of the Reform making a headline-grabbing claim, before swiftly rowing back on it, Mr Farage last month said <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/uk\/politics\/nigel-farage-migration-indefinite-leave-to-remain-b2831323.html\">children would be deported<\/a> as part of <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/topic\/reform-uk\">Reform UK\u2019s <\/a>strategy to tackle illegal migration.<\/p>\n<p>But the following day, he insisted that he had been \u201cvery, very clear\u201d that the party was focused on \u201cillegal males\u201d and \u201cnot even discussing women and children at this stage\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.independent.co.uk \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Get our free View from Westminster email Nigel Farage has been condemned for peddling false information and \u201cwild conspiracy theories\u201d after he falsely accused Romanians in Britain of eating swans in parks in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2034084,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2046514","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-royalty"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Donald-Trump-set-to-invite-King-Charles-to-White-House.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2046514","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2046514"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2046514\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2034084"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2046514"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2046514"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2046514"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}