What is the Patriot Platform, at the origin of the anti-migrant protests in the United Kingdom?

“Groups of men from the four corners of the country are joining us to form a resistance group. Something will happen soon, and it will cause a shock wave.” These words, spoken by British far-right activist and influencer Daniel Thomas, aka “Danny Tommo”, in front of a group of ultra-muscular white men, were broadcast on September 2 in a video posted on the activist’s YouTube channel.

In this video, Danny Tommo shows himself “recruiting” future members of the “Patriot Platform”, a new nationalist group of which he is both founder and leader. Its main objective: to “protect British women and children” from an alleged foreign threat, exacerbated, according to them, by immigration. Below the video, a title in English : “Well done, Northwest guys! This is how a movement grows. #Patriot Platform.”

Four days later, on September 5 and 6, the same “Patriot Plaform” led demonstrations of hundreds of hooded and black-clad activists, flocking to the port cities of Dover and Portsmouth, in the south of England, to hinder the arrival of migrants. Contrasting with the members of the group, Danny Tommo appeared with his face fully uncovered on his X account, to relay and support the demonstrations.

“Fascist symbolism”

“We have taken a step forward in this idea of ​​intimidation of foreigners. There is a violence assumed by this group, whose physical appearance evokes that of a paramilitary militia which is going to take justice into its own hands. This fascistic symbolism is quite terrifying,” warns Laetitia Langlois, lecturer in British political studies at the University of Angers.

These anti-immigration protests in the United Kingdom are not new. In August 2024, violent clashes supported by calls for hatred broke out after the murder of three young girls during a knife attack at a school in Southport, in the northwest of England. Hotels where asylum seekers were housed were then targeted by demonstrators. In the summer of 2025, similar violence was committed in Epping, in the east of the country, after accusations of sexual assault targeting an Ethiopian in the town.

Also readIn the United Kingdom, an explosive extremist cocktail at the origin of violent demonstrations

“Until now, we have rather observed large peaceful demonstrations, organized by figures of the British extreme right, accompanied, on the sidelines, by acts of violence,” explains William Allchorn, research director at the International Police and Public Protection Research Institute (IPPPRI) at Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge.

“We have never seen self-defense movements of this scale before. The big difference is that their members are better trained, better organized than what we have been able to observe until now,” he adds.

Close to Tommy Robinson

Daniel Thomas boasted on X, on August 12, of having exceeded 45,000 registrations on the online platform. So where do these men come from who say they are “ready to fight” for the safety of their loved ones?

The very recent “Patriot Plaform” was formed in June 2026 from the aggregation of different nationalist movements coming mainly from the south-east of England, where migrant boats mainly arrive after their crossings of the Channel. Among these groups, the Kent Patriots but also the South-London Patriots and the North-West Patriots.

According to William Allchorn, the latter have been carrying out local actions for several years, breaking into migrant accommodation centers to film the interior, or even provoking clashes.

“The anger of the members of these movements crystallized around the question of hotels used to accommodate refugees, in the summer of 2025. Then, there were these very large national demonstrations behind figures like Tommy Robinson. Daniel Thomas simply saw that there was a ‘market’ to rush into,” deciphers the scientist.

Also readTommy Robinson, the face of the British far right who fuels anti-Muslim hatred

“Danny Tommo” has already been active for several years in small ultra-right anti-immigration groups. He was notably a member of the group Raise the Colors, which became known in the summer of 2025 with a campaign encouraging the raising of British and English flags across England, before taking over the French coasts. Actions which resulted in him being banned from entering French territory last January.

He is also close to Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, alias Tommy Robinson, at the origin, among others, of the parade of 110,000 to 150,000 people organized in support of the death of the American Trumpist influencer Charlie Kirk, in September 2025.

“Danny Tommo wanted to emancipate himself from the tutelary figure of Tommy Robinson,” comments Laetitia Langlois. “He brought together this constellation of far-right groups, with the aim of carrying out extremely visible actions. And he succeeded.”, she adds.

Influence of the Maga sphere

In addition to the anti-immigration discourse, the Patriot Platform relies on Christian nationalist vocabulary, similar to that used by Donald Trump and his administration. In the introduction to his X account, Daniel Tomas introduces himself as a “guardian of the faith”. “I am committed to defending my family and my homeland. I place my trust in Jesus Christ, our Savior,” he wrote. A crusading and Islamophobic speech which is accompanied by the idea of ​​setting oneself up as the “savior” of the declining West.

“It’s very militaristic language. Migrants are described as men of fighting age, with the idea that the nation must be defended against them,” analyzes William Allchorn.

For Daniel Trilling, journalist and author of the book “If We Tolerate This. How the British Establishment Made The Far Right Respectable?” (Picador), the Maga sphere voluntarily contributed to making this vocabulary more visible, in order to serve its own discourse on the decline of the West.

“Over the past two years, the American right has made significant efforts to impose its vision in the United Kingdom and support far-right influencers. Elon Musk himself openly supports British far-right personalities, relaying posts and boosting X profiles,” recalls the journalist.

In August 2024, the CEO of X commented on posts about anti-migrant protests. “Civil war is inevitable,” he wrote on his social network. London then described these comments as “unjustifiable” and its behavior as “irresponsible”.

Ambivalence with Reform UK

However, recalls Laetitia Langlois, this nationalist and identity discourse has its roots in Great Britain. “It is because Nigel Farage (figure of the British extreme right, Editor’s note) has trivialized the discourse of hostility to immigration and defense of Western Christian values, that these groups evolve in an environment with very favorable conditions,” she recalls.

Also readNigel Farage’s Reform UK party shaken by new donations affair

The Patriot Platform maintains an ambivalent relationship with Reform UK, the far-right anti-immigration party led by Nigel Farage. The latter endeavored to condemn the violence that occurred in Dover and Portsmouth, to better support his role: “only the Reform party will turn the boats around”, he wrote on Sunday September 6 on X.

“There’s a sort of back-and-forth game between the mainstream and fringe extremist movements like the Patriot Platform. On the one hand, the Patriot Platform exploits this general climate of xenophobia, on the other, it tries to shift the debate even further to the right, making Reform UK appear ineffective,” explains Daniel Trilling.

If the Patriot Platform says it wants to evolve outside of any political institution, it has already shown, in three months of existence, that it can influence public debate. “The street action of the Patriot Platform and the political action of Reform UK operate in completely separate spheres, but they can reinforce each other,” concludes Daniel Trilling.