Nigel Farage has backed a public ban on face coverings – including the burka (Image: Getty)
Nigel Farage demanded a total ban on public face coverings including burkas and balaclavas, calling them a “menace” to society. Mr Farage, the Reform UK leader and Clacton MP, said the coverings enabled bullying, intimidation and crime and were “not the British way”.
He described how a young Reform UK member was left “badly bloodied” and hospitalised after being struck with a rock in broad daylight while heading to the party conference. The attacker wore a facial covering, Mr Farage said. Hours later, in an unconnected event, about 500 activists in balaclavas and other face coverings marched onto major roads near Dover, blocking traffic at Britain’s busiest ferry port. They were protesting the Government’s failure to stop small-boat migrant crossings. Mr Farage said he supported the right to protest – but insisted this was not the way to go about it.
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Writing in The Telegraph, he said: “Face coverings are a menace. Whether it is a heavy-duty balaclava worn by a gang member or the dark mask of ‘Antifa’ extremists their purpose is to bully and intimidate.”
Mr Farage said ordinary people now cross the road to avoid masked figures on high streets, while balaclava-clad youths on e-bikes and scooters terrorise neighbourhoods.
Britain has one of the highest numbers of CCTV cameras in the world, yet criminals and shoplifters use facial concealment as a “get-out-of-jail-free card,” he said.
Reform UK is calling for a total ban on full-face coverings in public spaces with “no ifs, no buts” — including religious ones. A free society rests on the social contract of showing one’s face, Mr Farage said.
Nigel Farage addresses Reform UK’s annual conference at the weekend (Image: Getty)
Mr Farage pointed to existing rules that allow staff at petrol stations and banks to demand removal of face coverings, and asked why the same standard should not apply everywhere.
European countries including France, Belgium, Denmark, Austria and Switzerland already ban full-face coverings in public, he said.
Mr Farage dismissed expected criticism about civil liberties.
He said: “What about the liberty of the elderly woman afraid to step outside her front door after dark?.
“What about the freedom of small shopkeepers trying to defend their livelihoods against masked looters? What about the safety of our member on Friday morning?”
“Facial coverings, quite frankly, are not the British way. Let’s ban them in public once and for all.”
The intervention comes amid rising concern over masked disorder and crime.
Mr Farage framed the ban as essential for public safety, social cohesion and the basic ability of citizens to identify one another in a functioning democracy.
Nigel Farage Erupts on ‘Burka and Balaclava Ban’ as He Rages Over ‘Menace’ to Society
Nigel Farage has called for a sweeping ban on full-face coverings in public places, saying that balaclavas, masks and religious face veils can create anonymity that enables intimidation and crime.
The Reform UK leader’s intervention comes after a series of highly charged protests in Britain involving demonstrators wearing balaclavas and other face coverings. Farage has argued that the issue is not confined to one political group or one type of clothing, insisting that his proposed restrictions would apply to all full-face coverings, including religious garments such as the burka.
Writing for Reform UK on September 8, Farage described face coverings as a “menace” and argued that Britain should prohibit them in public “once and for all”. His comments followed a masked protest in Dover and other incidents involving demonstrators concealing their identities.
Farage’s argument
Farage’s position is based primarily on public safety, anonymity and intimidation.
In his statement, the Reform leader referred to an incident in which a young Reform member was allegedly attacked with a rock while travelling to the party conference. He said the attacker was wearing a face covering.
Farage then pointed to demonstrations in Dover, where hundreds of protesters wearing masks and balaclavas gathered in opposition to the Government’s handling of small-boat Channel crossings.
Although Farage said he supported the right to protest, he criticised the use of face coverings during demonstrations. His argument is that anonymity can make intimidation and criminal behaviour easier while making it harder for victims, witnesses and authorities to identify individuals.
He has extended that argument beyond political demonstrations.
According to Farage, the same principle should apply whether a face covering is worn by someone involved in a criminal gang, a protester or someone wearing a religious veil.
“Reform UK is calling for a ban on all full-face coverings in public spaces,” the party leader stated, making clear that religious coverings would also be included.
Why burkas are part of the proposal
The inclusion of religious coverings makes Farage’s proposal considerably broader than a conventional crackdown on balaclavas at protests.
A burka is a full-body garment that includes a mesh covering over the face, while a niqab covers the face but leaves the eyes visible. Neither should automatically be treated as equivalent to a criminal disguise simply because it conceals someone’s face.
Farage’s proposal, however, is based on a general principle: people in public spaces should normally be identifiable.
This is why he has deliberately linked the two subjects.
The proposal would therefore represent a significant change from measures aimed specifically at people concealing their identities for criminal or antisocial purposes.
The political debate surrounding face veils is not new. Reform politicians have previously called for restrictions on burkas and niqabs, while critics have argued that such measures could interfere with religious freedom and disproportionately affect Muslim women.
The question is consequently broader than whether balaclavas should be restricted during demonstrations. It concerns the point at which public authorities can require individuals to reveal their faces and whether the same rules should apply to everyone regardless of why they are covering their face.
Britain does not currently have a blanket ban
One important distinction is between Farage’s proposal and the law currently in force.
Britain does not currently have a nationwide prohibition on every type of full-face covering in every public place.
However, authorities already have powers that can restrict face coverings in particular circumstances.
Local councils can also introduce restrictions through Public Spaces Protection Orders, subject to legal requirements and local circumstances.
Nottingham provides a recent example.
In September 2026, new restrictions came into force in parts of Nottingham allowing police and council officers to require a person to remove a face covering where officers believe it is being used to conceal identity for criminal activity, antisocial behaviour or intimidating conduct. The measures can include on-the-spot fines and confiscation of face coverings.
Importantly, Nottingham’s restrictions are not a blanket ban.
They contain exemptions for religious, medical, health and work-related reasons.
That distinction is central to the national debate.
Farage is advocating something considerably wider: a general prohibition on full-face coverings in public, including religious coverings.
The protests that reignited the debate
The immediate political context was a series of demonstrations surrounding migration and Channel crossings.
In Dover, hundreds of masked protesters gathered near the port in early September during demonstrations over small boats arriving across the English Channel.
Senior Reform figures themselves criticised the use of balaclavas.
Farage said he “deplored” people wearing masks or balaclavas during public demonstrations, while other senior Reform figures also distanced themselves from the masked protest.
That is significant because the protests were associated with an issue strongly connected with Reform UK’s political agenda.
Farage has sought to distinguish opposition to illegal or irregular migration from the use of intimidating tactics on the streets.
His argument is that people can protest without hiding their faces.
The subsequent call for a general ban therefore represents an attempt to apply the same principle across the political spectrum.
Supporters see anonymity as the problem
The strongest argument in favour of Farage’s proposal is that face coverings can make identification more difficult.
Police already rely heavily on CCTV and other forms of evidence when investigating offences. If suspects conceal their faces, identification can become more complicated.
Farage has also argued that masked groups can create fear even when no offence has yet taken place.
The concern is not necessarily that every person wearing a mask is committing a crime. Rather, it is that anonymity can change the atmosphere in public spaces and make intimidation easier.
Recent local measures illustrate how authorities are approaching this problem.
Nottinghamshire Police said that evidence identified more than 180 city-centre incidents involving face coverings or balaclavas between June 2025 and June 2026. The new local powers were designed specifically around situations involving crime, antisocial behaviour or intimidating conduct.
This provides one example of why some authorities believe targeted restrictions can be justified.
Civil liberties and religious freedom
The opposing argument centres on individual liberty.
A blanket prohibition would inevitably affect people who cover their faces for reasons unrelated to crime.
That could include religious dress, medical masks, protection from extreme weather and some forms of employment.
The most sensitive issue is likely to be religious face coverings.
A national ban applying to burkas and niqabs would affect Muslim women who choose to wear them as part of their religious practice.
Supporters of restrictions argue that public identification and security should take priority in certain circumstances. Critics counter that the state should distinguish between someone deliberately hiding their identity to commit an offence and someone following a religious practice.
That distinction already exists in some local rules.
Nottingham’s current restrictions, for example, specifically provide exemptions for religious and medical reasons.
Farage’s proposal would remove that distinction by applying the same basic prohibition to religious full-face coverings.
European comparisons
Farage has also pointed to European countries that have introduced restrictions on full-face coverings.
France, Belgium, Denmark, Austria and Switzerland have all adopted national restrictions of varying forms.
However, laws differ considerably between countries in their scope, exemptions and enforcement.
The existence of restrictions elsewhere therefore does not automatically establish what Britain’s policy should be. It does, however, demonstrate that the question is not unique to the UK.
European governments have faced similar debates over security, public identification, religious freedom and individual liberty.
What happens next?
Farage’s announcement does not itself change British law.
A nationwide ban would require Parliament to legislate, with MPs debating the precise scope, exemptions and enforcement mechanisms.
Among the questions that would need to be answered are whether the restriction would apply everywhere or only in specified public spaces, whether there would be exemptions for health and work, how religious coverings would be treated, and what penalties would apply.
There would also be questions about enforcement.
A law covering every public space would potentially place police and other authorities in the position of determining when someone had breached the rules.
A narrower system, such as the measures recently introduced in Nottingham, would give authorities powers in specified circumstances rather than creating an absolute national prohibition.
For now, Farage’s proposal remains a political demand rather than a new nationwide rule.
A debate about identity, safety and freedom
The argument over burkas and balaclavas has now become part of a much wider British discussion about public safety, protest, religious freedom and anonymity.
Farage argues that showing one’s face in public should be treated as a basic social expectation and that anonymity can facilitate intimidation and crime.
Critics of blanket restrictions are likely to focus on proportionality and individual rights, particularly where face coverings have legitimate religious, medical or practical purposes.
The immediate controversy was triggered by masked protests, but the proposed solution reaches much further.
Whether Britain ultimately chooses targeted restrictions, broader rules or no additional national legislation will depend on Parliament’s assessment of the evidence, legal considerations and competing civil-liberty arguments.
For the moment, the central fact is straightforward: Nigel Farage has called for a nationwide ban on full-face coverings in public, including burkas and balaclavas, but Britain has not introduced such a blanket national ban. Existing restrictions can apply in specific circumstances and local areas, with exemptions in some cases.