Tommy Robinson jailed for 18 months after admitting contempt of court

Tommy Robinson has been jailed for 18 months after admitting contempt of court by repeating false allegations against a Syrian refugee, in breach of an injunction.

The political activist, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, admitted 10 breaches of a High Court order made in 2021 at the start of a hearing at Woolwich Crown Court on Monday.

Lawyers for the Solicitor General claimed the 41-year-old had been “thumbing his nose at the court” and “undermining” the rule of law, including by publishing a film called Silenced, which contains the libellous allegations, last year.

Barristers for Robinson, who wore a grey suit and white shirt, said it was his “principles that have brought him before the court”.

Passing sentence, Mr Justice Johnson said the breaches of the injunction were not “accidental, negligent or merely reckless” and that the “custodial threshold is amply crossed”.

He said: “It was a planned, deliberate, direct, flagrant breach of the court’s orders.”

He continued: “Nobody is above the law. Nobody can pick and choose which injunctions they obey and those they do not.”

He added: “It is in the interests of the whole community that injunctions are obeyed.”

Robinson, in a grey suit and white shirt, stood with his hands on the edge of the dock and looked up at dozens of supporters, shrugging his shoulders, as the judge handed down the sentence.

His supporters packed the public gallery and stood outside the court on Monday, with some in court waving and blowing kisses to Robinson as he was led from the dock.

Robinson had been barred from repeating false allegations against Jamal Hijazi, after the then-schoolboy successfully sued him for libel.

The Solicitor General issued the first contempt claim against Robinson in June this year, claiming he “knowingly” breached the order on four occasions, including by having “published, caused, authorised or procured” Silenced in May last year.

The film remains pinned to the top of Robinson’s profile on social media site X, while he also repeated the claims in three interviews between February and June 2023.

The second claim was issued in August concerning six further breaches, including playing the film to a demonstration in Trafalgar Square in central London earlier this year.

Lawyers for the Solicitor General told an earlier hearing that showing the film at the demonstration was a “flagrant” breach of the court order.

All of his actions so far suggest he regards himself as above the law.Mr Justice Johnson

In his sentencing remarks, Mr Justice Johnson said: “As to harm, the primary harm caused is the corrosive effect it has on the administration of justice and the ability of courts to deliver justice.”

He continued: “The defendant has not shown any remorse for his breaches of the order. It would have been surprising had he done so.”

The judge added Robinson had been found to have committed contempt of court on three previous occasions, adding: “All of his actions so far suggest he regards himself as above the law.”

Robinson was ordered to serve 18 months, less three days he has spent on remand, having been in custody since Friday.

He said that Robinson could only serve 14 months if he “purges” his contempt, such as by removing the film from his X account.