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Threat leads to arrest
A man was arrested in London over a social media threat to shoot Nigel Farage, with the Metropolitan Police saying he was arrested on Tuesday in his 20s on suspicion of sending threatening communications to a Member of Parliament.
“On Tuesday 14 July a man in his 20s was arrested by Met officers”
The threat was tied to a post on X reported to police on 8 May, and the message warned: "I am going to shoot you in the head if you win."
The arrest came six days after Reform spokesperson Ann Widdecombe was killed at her Devon home, and counter terror police are investigating the death.
BBC reported that the Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team informed Farage of the arrest on Wednesday, while the Met Police said the man was arrested in south London and has been bailed pending further inquiries.
In the same case, the Met Police said detectives submitted an application to a social media platform to gain access to the user’s contact information before the man was arrested with support from local Met officers.
Farage and Reform react
Nigel Farage told The Telegraph that the arrest was "the first time the police have ever proactively acted on a social media post," and he urged police to look at "the other three or four hundred similar posts from this year alone."
Reform UK’s home affairs spokesperson Zia Yusuf said there was an "overwhelming sense of fear amongst the Reform MPs" after Widdecombe’s killing, and he said that in the current situation with state protection there had been "some movement in the very near past."
Yusuf also said the threats were being taken seriously, adding: "I’m pleased to say the threats are being taken seriously."
The Guardian reported that the post was made on X at the time of the May elections and that Farage had claimed police had not taken death threats against MPs seriously enough.
The Guardian also said the arrest followed a post reported to police on Friday 8 May, after which detectives sought access to the user’s contact information and arrested the man at a residential address in south London.
Security debate widens
The arrest intensified a wider debate over MPs’ security after Ann Widdecombe’s killing, with the BBC saying counter terror police are investigating the death and that the Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team informed Farage of the arrest on Wednesday.
“"we must do more to defend our democracy"”
At Prime Minister’s Questions, Sir Keir Starmer said "we must do more to defend our democracy," and he called it "chilling" that three sitting or former MPs had been murdered during his 11 years in parliament.
The Independent reported that Reform called for MPs to have their security improved and that Reform said additional security should be raised from around £4m to up to £100m to provide full security for all who want it.
In a press conference, Zia Yusuf appeared to accuse politicians and the media of creating a narrative tantamount to "incitement," saying: "A narrative so relentless it constitutes incitement."
The Independent also reported that counterterrorism police said Widdecombe was killed in a "targeted attack," and that the wider conversation about the safety of MPs followed her death.
