British far-right activist Tommy Robinson flees UK amid contempt of court allegations, High Court told

Robinson was scheduled to appear at the Royal Courts of Justice on Monday (July 29) for a hearing related to his latest contempt for the court case but failed to attend.

The Solicitor General initiated legal action against Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, in June for allegedly breaching a court order following his loss in a 2021 libel case. Adam Payter, representing the Solicitor General, informed the court that Robinson is believed to have left the country just hours after being released on unconditional bail following his weekend arrest.

Robinson was arrested after a "large demonstration" in central London, which included the screening of a film central to the contempt case, demonstrating what Payter described as a "flagrant" and "admitted" breach of the court order. Following the demonstration, Robinson was detained by Kent Police during a port stop and search in Folkestone under the Terrorism Act 2000.

Payter said: "We understand he failed to co-operate with a port stop and search. The implication is he was attempting to leave the country and therefore was not intending to attend this hearing this morning." He added that Robinson was reminded of Monday's hearing before being released on unconditional bail at 10pm on Sunday, but it is believed he "left the UK last night and there was nothing to prevent him from doing so."

The court was informed that Robinson "is not within the jurisdiction of the UK," with Payter claiming that Robinson had returned to the UK "with the purpose of publishing the film" before leaving again "to put himself beyond the reach of this court’s jurisdiction."

Mr Justice Johnson expressed satisfaction that the hearing could proceed in Robinson’s absence, stating that a further hearing is expected in October. However, the judge ordered that the hearing be delayed until early October to allow Robinson time to indicate if he would attend voluntarily or apply to "set aside" the warrant.

In 2021, Syrian refugee Jamal Hijazi successfully sued Robinson after the then-schoolboy was assaulted at Almondbury Community School in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, in October 2018. A viral clip of the incident led to Robinson making false claims about Hijazi, including accusations of attacking girls at his school, resulting in the libel case.

Mr Justice Nicklin ordered Robinson to pay Hijazi £100,000 in damages and legal costs, and issued an injunction preventing Robinson from repeating the false allegations. Campaign group Hope Not Hate alleged that Robinson had ignored the injunction and repeated the allegations, leading to the Solicitor General's legal action.