has confirmed Reform UK is mounting a private prosecution against two men involved in a brawl with police at earlier this year.
The high-profile fracas, and involved police officers and two Asian men, has sparked enormous controversy over allegations of misconduct and “two-tier policing”.
The incident reportedly began after the men confronted a passenger who had allegedly racially abused their mother on a flight.
As the family was leaving the airport, a confrontation with Greater Manchester ensued, which escalated into a physical altercation.
Video footage of the event, widely shared online, showed police officers restraining the men, with accusations that one officer used excessive force, and the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has since launched an investigation.
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Nigel Farage has claimed the failure to approve charges is an example of two-tier policing (Image: GETTY)
However, subsequent clips appear to show the two officers being assaulted prior to this, prompting the arrest of four men including Fahir Amaaz, 19, and Muhammad Amaad, 25, both brothers from Rochdale, along with two unnamed others.
All were taken into custody on the evening of the incident and were later released on bail while investigations continued.
Mr Farage, writing in the , said the party he leads has now taken matters into its own hands.
He said: “Despite compelling CCTV footage, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has not charged the two alleged assailants almost four months later. This is despite us serving notice to them on October 7 that if they were not going to do their job, then we would do it for them by running a private criminal prosecution against the assailants.
The appalling attack on police officers at Manchester Airport has been completely ignored by the CPS. That’s why Reform MPs are commencing a private prosecution.We do not want to live in a two-tier country.
— Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage)
“This all seems inexplicable until one digs a bit further. When the CPS wants to send a strong message it can, such as bringing rapid charges and trials, based on CCTV footage, of those involved in disorder and riots in summer 2024.
“This suited the Prime Minister, who had publicly spoken of his desire that people would be dealt with promptly and severely. Prison space was cleared to make way for people being sentenced.”
However, he added: “With the Manchester Airport incident, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating the self-defensive actions of the officers towards the end of the brutal beating they received by the assailants.
“We at Reform UK will not stand for two-tier justice and two-tier policing.”
Mr Farage said Reform UK had engaged TM Eye Ltd, one of Britain’s leading private prosecutors, to take on the case. The company yesterday wrote to both GMP and CPS to get the ball rolling.
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He added: “We have secured the funding to carry this all the way to conclusion. We are also making it clear to the CPS that we will not tolerate it hijacking our prosecution, then dropping it for political reasons later on.
“We at Reform will stand up for police officers even if the CPS and IOPC will not.”
A Crown Prosecution Service spokesperson said: “We are considering material and are providing advice in relation to a series of alleged criminal offences at Manchester Airport in July this year.
“We are working with Greater Manchester Police and the Independent Office for Police Conduct while their enquiries continue.”
Writing in the in August, Stephen Parkinson, Director of Public Prosecutions, said: “Talk of a one-sided approach is unfounded.
“Those needing proof need only look at the violent and disorderly so-called ‘counter-protestors’ who we charged and prosecuted with the same even-handed professionalism as the mob they claimed to oppose.
“The CPS prosecutes people who break the law – irrespective of background or political affiliation. This is why we are independent from government. It is central to who we are.”
He added: “Some may ask why all crime isn’t punished so briskly.
“Some cases take longer because they are complex. Not every crime is as obvious as pushing a flaming wheelie bin at police, or is captured on multiple body-worn cameras.
“Crimes like rape and domestic violence often take deeper, specialist work to build a case and ultimately prove – something we are working with police to do better.”