Tommy Robinson permanently banned by Facebook and Instagram

Social media giant says EDL founder’s page ‘organised hate’ and ‘called for violence targetting Muslims’

Tommy Robinson has been banned from Facebook and Instagram after repeatedly breaking hate speech policies.

Both pages were removed on Tuesday in response to “organised hate” and the targetting of Muslims.

“Tommy Robinson’s Facebook page has repeatedly broken standards, posting material that uses dehumanising language and calls for violence targetted at Muslims,” a Facebook spokesperson said.

“He has also behaved in ways that violate our policies around organised hate. As a result, in accordance with our policies, we have removed Tommy Robinson’s official Facebook page and Instagram profile.

“This is not a decision we take lightly, but individuals and organisations that attack others on the basis of who they are have no place on Facebook or Instagram.”

It comes after Facebook issued a final written warning to administrators of Robinson’s account on 24 January, over posts including one “calling Muslims filthy scumbags” and “calling on people to ‘make war’ on Muslims”.

The page was deleted because of further violations and support for “recognised hate figures” including Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes – who Robinson is scheduled to tour Australia with next month – and the far-right group Generation Identity.

The anti-Islam activist has previously been removed from Twitter and Paypal over his activities, and his website was deleted in December.

Counter-extremist groups have long called for Robinson’s Facebook page to be removed following a series of controversies.

The profile had a “donate” button until it was removed amid concern a tool originally intended for charities was being abused.

The social media company said it would take action “when ideas and opinions cross the line and amount to hate speech that may create an environment of intimidation and exclusion for certain groups in society – in some cases with potentially dangerous offline implications”.

On the same day Robinson’s page was deleted, several supporters reported that their accounts had been disabled, including former Breitbart London editor Raheem Kassam.

Robinson’s Facebook page, which had more than 1 million followers, was his primary platform for communicating with fans and organising demonstrations.

He said the “corrupt media and the establishment” were trying “to silence any opposition to their globalist plans”.

Supporters characterised the ban as a “free speech” crackdown, but it was welcomed by MPs including Harriet Harman and Tom Watson, who said the move came “far too late”.

On Saturday, Robinson held a protest outside the BBC headquarters in Salford over an upcoming Panorama edition focused on him, and broadcast his own “documentary” on Facebook.

He used posts to ask for donations and take aim at issues and individuals, including politicians, journalists and members of the public.

Robinson posted videos doorstepping critics, with police being called after he visited the parents of a student who had been archiving his social media posts in December.

Last month, he posted a Facebook live from outside a Scottish National Party MP’s surgery, and last May a broadcast from outside a grooming gang trial in Leeds saw him jailed.

Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, was freed in August over procedural failings and is awaiting a decision from the attorney general on whether a contempt of court case will proceed.

In November, he was appointed by Ukip leader Gerard Batten as the party’s adviser on grooming gangs and prisons.

Mr Batten claimed Robinson’s Facebook account was “shut down for BS reasons” and claimed the “left’s establishment are closing ranks and counterattacking”.

He has defended Robinson’s appointment, but in a December Ukip Facebook video he admitted: “I do wonder if I made a wise decision, but I’ve asked him to do this for us and what he can bring to the table is access to a million Facebook followers.”

In recent months, the English Defence League (EDL) founder has been encouraging fans to sign up for a mailing list in case he was “censored” by Facebook.

He retains a YouTube account, which has more than 288,000 subscribers, but had not seen activity in almost a year until Monday.

Robinson also has a profile on Gab, which is known for its far-right user base, but had not posted since last April.

Nick Lowles, chief executive of Hope not Hate, said: “Stephen Lennon is a far-right thug who uses his platform to bully, abuse and stir up division, monetising his hatred to earn huge sums while hiding behind a fake free speech mantle.

“Lennon has a long record of abuse towards minorities such as Muslims, so we welcome today’s decision as well as Facebook’s continued actions in cleaning up their platform.”

Weyman Bennett, joint secretary of Unite Against Fascism, said: “This decision should have been taken much earlier. Robinson has a sordid history of instigating religious and racial hatred online.”