THE LEADER OF the far-right group Britain First has been charged with using threatening, abusive and insulting language and behaviour.

Paul Golding, aged 35, was arrested outside the courtroom yesterday while accompanying the deputy leader of the same group Jayda Fransen, aged 31, to a hearing.

Fransen has also been arrested and charged under the same terms as Golding. She had already faced two charged relating to behaviour intended to or likely to stir up hatred.

She made the headlines in November after US President Donald Trump retweeted her messages.

The tweets purported to show violence and religious-focused vandalism by what Fransen claims are members of the Islamic community, but the authenticity of the videos has been repeatedly questioned.

White House spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders admitted to the press that the videos might not be real when defending the president’s actions to the press. When asked if the video was real, she answered:

“Whether it’s a real video, the threat is real. His goal is to promote strong border security and strong national security.”

Twitter The messages that Donald Trump retweeted. Twitter

The PSNI has confirmed that Golding is due to appear at Belfast Magistrates Court on 10 January 2018, while Fransen is due to appear on 15 December 2017.

Britain First

Founded in 2011, Britain First opposes multiculturalism and what it calls the “Islamisation” of Britain.

Small but publicity-savvy, it has staged direct-action protests at mosques and is active on social media. The group regularly posts inflammatory videos purporting to show violence by Muslims without context or supporting information.

Fransen, aged 31, was convicted last year of religiously aggravated harassment after hurling abuse at a Muslim woman wearing a hijab during what was billed as a “Christian patrol” in the town of Luton, north of London.

Comments have been closed for legal reasons.

Read: Leader of the British far-right group that Trump retweeted has been arrested

More:  Theresa May says Trump’s retweets of Britain First were ‘wrong’ – but he’s still welcome to visit

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