Sometimes I think that the British Establishment won’t rest until Tommy Robinson ends up murdered. If this were to happen, it would kill a number of birds with one stone.

First, it would rid the liberal elite of one of its most determined and outspoken critics — especially on the very awkward topics of Islam and rape gangs.

Secondly, it would almost inevitably result in rioting, which the government would secretly welcome as an excuse to flex its authoritarian muscles. The police would be encouraged to come down hard on Tommy’s supporters, thus demonstrating that the government is ‘serious’ about dealing with the ‘far right’ menace. It would show that Theresa May (or whoever replaces her) has a ‘firm grip’ and it would provide much welcome distraction from the awkward topic of Brexit.

Thirdly, it would be like the moment in the Peasants’ Revolt after William Walworth (the Mayor of London) killed the rebels’ leader Wat Tyler: the white working class rebellion would be nipped in the bud. No one would step in to fill Tommy’s place for who in their right mind, would wish to be either perpetually vilified by the Establishment as a far right thug or run the risk of being another martyr.

If these seem strong claims, consider the Establishment’s extraordinary indifference to the several physical assaults which have been launched on Robinson while on the campaign trail in the north of England.

Twice now, while canvassing to become a Member of the European Parliament (MEP), Robinson has been doused with milkshake, as well as being throttled and manhandled, either by Muslim thugs or their hard-left allies of convenience.

It has all been caught on camera so there is no disputing the facts: Robinson was not the aggressor; the attacks were unprovoked; it looks very much as though they were planned and calculated, rather than spur-of-the-moment acts by random passers-by.

Yet the police appear to have done nothing to stop, let alone pursue or arrest, the perpetrators. And other Establishment figures who really should know better — among them a Tory MP and a barrister — have actually been applauding these attacks.

Here’s the barrister, Rupert Myers:

Watching this guy tip a McShake over Tommy Robinson is probably the most satisfying thing you’ll see all day pic.twitter.com/7YnDr88Qaq — Rupert Myers (@RupertMyers) May 2, 2019

The Tory MP — Johnny Mercer — has since deleted and apologised for his tweet applauding the attack under the hashtag “#loveBritain”.

It would be nice to think that this was because Mercer belatedly recognised the idiocy of tweeting out in favour of random assaults on would-be politicians.

But no, his subsequent tweets suggest that this was merely another of the non-apology apologies that are becoming something of a Mercer speciality. (See also: his similarly weasellish behaviour during the Roger Scruton affair.) You can see why Mark Steyn calls Mercer a ‘modish wanker.‘

Here he is hinting that actually, he thinks dousing a political campaigner in thick milkshake is OK really.

No. Comparing a milkshake being thrown over someone to serious political violence is infantile. Never weighed in on colleagues getting shouted at in London, because in comparison to some countries, we are very lucky. I don’t condone any of it, but let’s not pretend we’re Zimbabwe https://t.co/aMKhBNNtZv — Johnny Mercer MP (@JohnnyMercerUK) May 3, 2019

Really? And what if next time, it’s not a milkshake that gets thrown but acid? What if it’s a knife attack?

Once you start suggesting that physical assaults of any kind are acceptable then you are legitimising violence. And violence has a nasty habit of escalating.

Look at what happened to the Dutch politician Pim Fortuyn. First they came for him with a cake (filled with vomit and excrement); next it was a bullet in the head from a left-wing environmental activist who no doubt felt emboldened and morally justified because Fortuyn had been vilified by the left-liberal Establishment as ‘far right’ and an ‘Islamophobe.’

Yeah, well, with Fortuyn it started with a cake and it ended with a bullet in the head. If you don't condemn the first, you're responsible for the second. pic.twitter.com/GDMldXAXW1 — NielsieLeaks 💎 ⌛ (@douwemees) May 3, 2019

The other extraordinary thing about this case is the double standards at play here.

As Brendan O’Neill notes in the Spectator:

The man who threw an egg at Jeremy Corbyn was roundly condemned as a violent threat to democracy and was jailed for 28 days. Yet the man who threw a milkshake at Robinson is turned into a national hero. No doubt Corbynistas will say this is all fine because their dear leader is a good, decent politician, and therefore does not deserve to be assaulted, whereas Robinson is a foul, hard-right troublemaker and therefore does deserve to be assaulted. But of course this is entirely subjective. There are many people out there who think Corbyn is an anti-Semite and a threat to national security. They believe this as strongly as Corbynistas believe Tommy Robinson is the new Oswald Mosley. So should these people have the right to assault Corbyn? Why not?

If the liberal Establishment really wants to prevent Tommy Robinson being elected a Member of the European Parliament, its most sensible strategy would be to treat him fairly — and give him the same protection as it would afford any other member of the public or political campaigner. As it is, ordinary white working class people will be looking at these incidents and going: “Typical. It’s one rule for the Establishment’s favoured groups. And another rule for the likes of us.” The longer these injustices continue the more likely it is we’re going to see Tommy Robinson heading off to Brussels as an MEP.

Provided he survives that long, of course.