Greater Manchester Police said that they are investigating an alleged assault against a Rochdale councillor from Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party, which is claimed to have been “politically motivated”.
Councillor Jordan Tarrant-Short said that he was “repeatedly punched in the head” last week on Bury Street in the northern English city of Rochdale, known internationally as one of the hotspots for Muslim child rape grooming gangs in Britain.
Tarrant-Short was elected to the Rochdale Council at a by-election in May, after which he became the city’s only councillor for the right-wing Reform UK party. He said that the attack had left him shaken and with bruising on his head.
In comments reported by the Manchester Evening News, the Reform councillor said: “I was attacked by a member of the public that wasn’t happy I was a member of Reform UK, which resulted in him punching me repeatedly in the head.
“In my opinion this was a politically motivated attack. The matter is now with the police for them to investigate and don’t wish to comment further until the police have concluded their investigation.”
Police confirmed that they had received reports of an incident and said that they have launched an investigation into the matter.
A GMP spokesperson said: “Police are investigating an assault that is alleged to have occurred on Tuesday, June 24, 2025 at premises on Bury Street in Heywood.
“We are gathering CCTV evidence and testimonies as we look to determine the circumstances around the incident reported.”
Violence against Reform politicians is not uncommon, including attacks on party leader Nigel Farage, who has experienced multiple incidents of so-called ‘milkshaking’ from the radical left.
However, despite the harsh approach to supposed political crimes on the right — like locking up housewives for posts on social media — two attackers against Mr Farage were spared jail time last year, including an Only Fans model who hurled a McDonald’s milkshake on him as well as a man who threw cement at the Brexit leader during a campaign event in Barnsley.
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