Britain’s far right youth

Alongside the dregs of 1980s neo-Nazi factions, there are now several, well-organised British youth groups promoting Christian nationalism. Their membership varies wildly from working-class college students to current and former Young Conservatives. Some espouse Old Testament Christian values, show a dedication to Britishness that borders on parody and idolise Oswald Mosley.

Although there is no suggestion that these groups are directly linked to the far right disorder of recent days, some have been sharing social media messages that promote myths of a crime wave led by migrants and British-born ethnic minorities that is somehow being ignored by the police and prime minister Keir Starmer. In this narrative, “two-tier policing” means that while migrants and minorities are treated with kid gloves, “British patriots” are targeted instead.

But what has convinced so many young men that any of this is true – or that Faith, Flag and Family are the way forward?

Recent Instagram posts by the League of Young British Patriots included one that depicts the London 7/7 attackers, one of the murderers of Lee Rigby and other criminals – none of whom are white – along with the message “Britain, how many more? How many more till you finally wake up and realise that enough is enough? Wake up Britain. Stop enslaving yourselves to corporate greed and start taking action.” 

Another LYBP post shows Starmer saying nothing about disorder in Harehills and Whitechapel, but blaming Southport on “football hooligans”, “social media” and “right wing thugs”.

The LYBP describe themselves as a “Right Wing Youth Organisation that believes in a Britain for the British, jobs for the British, and further support for the people who have served to keep our nation safe from terrorist [sic], enemies and traitors.” Their self-appointed chairman is Christopher Cousins, a 19-year-old RAF cadet from Streatham who was, until recently, a proud campaigner for Streatham Conservatives. 

Cousins’ first public appearance with the LYBP was on June 25 last year, when he joined the anti-Drag Queen Story Hour crowd outside the Honor Oak pub in South East London. Holding a sign which read “Leave Our Children Alone”, he remained on the sidelines when the protest turned violent, but later posted a picture on Instagram with the caption “I don’t cry, I make them cry”.

A scroll through Cousins’ Instagram account at the time revealed that he was mutual friends with a number of Oswald Mosley fan accounts and had liked posts praising Hitler’s abilities as a public speaker. By September 2023, he had stopped following these accounts. His Twitter bio was changed to reflect his apparent defection to UKIP and LYBP started their own website. 

Initially something of a one-man-band, LYBP later appointed five new members. Two of these – Henry Williams and Hamaam Shire have been prominent members of Young Conservative factions and their social media profiles display an array of positive community work. Another member and co-director is Daniel Patrick Campbell – a 21-year-old from Oxford.

Last year, Campbell’s Instagram bio said he was a “Monarchist and Christian Traditionalist with Conservative values”. This included sharing videos describing Mosley as a “great and visionary man”. Since then, his profile has been cleansed and he is now a Conservative Party member and was recently campaign manager for Oxford and Abingdon.

Henry Williams, a member of Romford Young Conservatives often pictured at meetings and gatherings with MP Andrew Rosindell, is equally interesting. On the surface, Williams presents as an English gentleman and has a prominent role in his local church, but he has liked social media posts about “white replacement theory”, follows the far right Anti-White Watch and, last year, claimed to be the deputy director of a group called the British Patriotic League. 

There is little information about the group, but it appears they were dedicated to the same myth of Britishness as the LYBP.  Their logo was a map of the UK superimposed on the logo of the German Heimatschutz movement and their policies were all about Faith, Flag and Family. 

When we contacted Williams about this via the Romford YC’s email address, we received no reply. Shortly after, all reference to the BPL was removed from his Instagram and Twitter accounts. The group have recently been revived as the British Patriotic Association and have removed the Heimatschutz part of their logo. 

When we contacted Cousins for comment, he told us: “Regarding your perception that the League is ‘far right’ and that we are all ‘fascists,’ I hope that your report isn’t biased and genuinely includes the concerns of our members in everyday politics and the growing threat of political correctness around the country.

“I strongly believe in everyone’s freedom of speech, and if Danny wishes to show support for Oswald Mosley, he can do so legally. It’s crucial to note that the video was posted a month before joining the League.”

We have also contacted Shire and Campbell for comment, but no response has been forthcoming.

Another group of young people on the far right, Youth Alliance, has been busy both on and off  social media in recent days. One post read, “Tribe up white man your enemies already have”. Another said: “When your kids are killed do NOT stand up and defend or you’ll be attacked by police. This is a war on the white man”. 

Another said: “All the news stations calling is FAR RIGHT… What’s far right with a countries native people FIGHTING BACK against knife crime and the murder of our children? if you want far right, you’ll find far right and it won’t be nice. it’s in gods hands now”.

Formed in April 2024, Youth Alliance has a lot in common with LYBP. Made up of young men based in and around Hampshire, they promote Christian Nationalism, admire Mosley, are staunchly anti-LGBT and anti-Muslim. 

Youth Alliance members appeared at the Tommy Robinson-led rally in central London in late July holding a union jack emblazoned with the slogans “Save British youth”, “Christ is king” and “Stop mass immigration”.

Until June 1, their online following was limited to the Telegram App. This grew exponentially following a Robinson rally, when a group member was filmed standing on telephone boxes and declaring the group’s support for nationalism. Robinson’s adult supporters then promoted them as proof positive that ‘the kids are alright’.

Our investigation showed that most members of the group are still teenagers and some have posted content on Instagram showing them in school uniform. Operating across Twitter, Instagram and TikTok, many of their videos are dedicated to their chosen football teams and show their interest in creating a far right ‘Football Firm’ a la the Chelsea Headhunters. 

Supporters of the Knights Templar – a far right Christian organisation run by former BNP leader Nick Griffin – Youth Alliance’s faith informs their political stance. Not fans of the Conservative party, they are devout supporters of Reform and group leader Josh (aka Harry) gleefully tweeted “Absolutely love this man, stop the boats can’t believe he noticed us!” after Richard Tice shared a video of them being stopped by police at a protest earlier this year.

Having few followers and little visible impact, it is easy to see these groups as paper tigers. YA’s activism is mostly limited to flyposting bus shelters, whilst LYBP’s only policies are to control immigration and ‘save the Great British Railway’ (so, if nothing else, the trains will run on time), but it is the driving force behind them which gives cause for concern. 

Both LYBP and YA have been inspired into action by far right student group Turning Point (TPUK). They too have been active on social media in recent days, with posts including one claiming “Two-tier Keir is hijacking the anger over three children being murdered and eight other kids stabbed, to clamp down on his political opponents. Starmer has declared war on patriotism, we won’t surrender to him.”

Key players in the anti-Drag protest movement which led to LYBP’s first public appearance, our investigation revealed TPUK to have a greater level of involvement in Youth Alliance. Videos shared on Twitter by TPUK show their support for YA’s protest against a Pro-Palestine demonstration, inviting others in Portsmouth (where one member is based) to join them at further events.

Later TPUK posts then show Youth Alliance members Max Cleeve (far left in the pic) and Josh (far right) looking decidedly awkward while holding a banner bearing the TPUK logo.

Turning Point’s ability to place their members in politically significant roles is well-known. From SpAds to influential Christian youth groups, TPUK members have more than a foot in the door when it comes to political influence. Despite this, they are often deeply critical of the Conservative Party and promote the Christo-Nationalist ideas espoused by the New Conservatives and their endless “culture war”. 

Desperate to avoid being branded ‘far right’, they still follow the playbook of many far right groups by claiming the Left to be the home of “middle class elites”; a manipulation tactic to convince working-class young men that the TPUK way is the right way.

Run by wealthy, well-educated members of the middle class, with former Conservative MP Marco Longhi as their honorary president, it is hard to see what TPUK are offering these young men beyond the chance to push Christo-nationalism to the forefront of right wing politics. 

In febrile times, this is a dangerous game.