Tommy Robinson released from prison after sentence cut by months
Tommy Robinson has been released from prison after his sentence for contempt of court was reduced by the High Court.
The far-right activist, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, left HMP Woodhill in Milton Keynes on Tuesday after his 18-month sentence was cut by four months last week.
Shortly after his release, Robinson, 42, was filmed speaking on his X account for about 20 minutes with longer hair, a bushy beard, and a rosary around his neck.
JORDAN PETTITT/PA
Robinson declared his intention to organise a free speech festival in London for his supporters later in the year.
He was jailed in October after admitting multiple breaches of an injunction made in 2021, which barred him from repeating false allegations against a Syrian refugee who successfully sued him for libel.
This included having 'published, caused, authorised or procured' Silenced, a documentary which contained libellous allegations, in May 2023. A second claim was issued in August last year concerning six further breaches, including playing the film at a demonstration in Trafalgar Square.
Asked how he was feeling after his release, Robinson told supporters: 'Unfortunately, in a country that doesn't believe in free speech, being a citizen journalist … this place [prison] is an occupational hazard.'
He claimed he had 'faced relentless attacks from the British state, wielding lawfare as a weapon in order to silence me'.
Robinson said attempts to censor him over the years had not worked, and thanked Elon Musk because 'if we didn't have X, everyone would just think I lied'.
In the ruling which reduced Robinson's sentence, Mr Justice Johnson said he displayed an 'absence of contrition or remorse' but had shown a 'change in attitude'.
The judge said: 'He has given an assurance that he will comply with the injunction in the future, that he has no intention of breaching it again, and that he is aware of the consequences of what would happen if he breached the injunction again.'
The decision to release Robinson early came after he lost a legal battle over the length of his sentence in April. Three senior judges at the Court of Appeal — including the lady chief justice, Baroness Carr of Walton-on-the-Hill — found there was 'no reasonable basis' to alter the prison term.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sky News
33 minutes ago
- Sky News
Diplomatic win for UK hosting US-China trade talks
Sky News understands that the Trump administration approached the UK government to ask if it would host round two of the US-China trade talks. This is a useful 'diplo-win' for the UK. The first round was held in Geneva last month. News of that happening came as a surprise. The Chinese and the Americans were in the midst of a Trump-instigated trade war. President Trump was en route to Saudi Arabia and suddenly we got word of talks in Switzerland. They went surprisingly well. US treasury secretary Scott Bessent and his Chinese counterpart He Lifeng, met face-to-face and agreed to suspend most tariffs for 90 days. But two weeks later, the Trump administration accused Beijing of breaking the agreements reached in Geneva. Beijing threw the blame back at Washington. On Wednesday, Donald Trump and Xi Jinping spoke by phone. The Chinese claimed this call was at the Americans' request. Either way, the consequence was that the talks were back on track. "I just concluded a very good phone call with President Xi of China, discussing some of the intricacies of our recently made, and agreed to, trade deal," President Trump said this week. From that call came the impetus for a second round of talks. A venue was needed. In stepped the UK at short notice. Beyond being geographically convenient, UK government sources suggest that Britain is geopolitically in the right place right now to act as this bridge and facilitator. The UK-China relationship is in the process of a "reset". Other locations, like Brussels or other EU capitals, would have been less workable. Crucially too, for the UK, this is also potentially advantageous as it seeks to get its own UK-US trade agreement, to eliminate or massively reduce tariffs, over the line. 5:08 Talks on reaching the "implementation phase" have been near-continuous since the announcement last month, but having the American principals in London is a plus. Sideline talks are possible, but even the presence of the US team in the UK is helpful. For all the chaos that President Trump is causing with his tariffs, he has instigated face-to-face conversations as he seeks resets. Key players are sitting down around tables - yes, to untangle the trade knots which Trump tied, but this whole episode has pulled foes together around the same table; it has forced relationships and maybe mutual understanding. That's useful. And for this next round, between superpowers, the UK is the host. Also useful.
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
Gardeners' World fave reveals £2 Asda trick to feed family veg all summer – & it's perfect for small spaces
WHAT could you do with a square meter in your outside space? Turns out - quite a lot - says Gardeners' World presenter Nick Bailey - who's spearheading new campaign Make a Metre Matter. 2 2 He wants to get Sun Gardening readers involved too - supporting wildlife and sustainability - and making the planet a better place. 'There's 20 million gardens in Britain. If 20 million people just dedicated one metre, that's quite a lot of metres isn't it?,' he told me. 'There are loads of ways you can make a meaningful difference, including growing plants for pollinators, growing veg to cut down on food miles and creating a compost heap.' Nick's created a Headline Show Garden for BBC Gardeners' World Live later this month - with lots of Make a Metre Matter ideas to take home. He added: 'You can grow nine lettuces in that space. You could grow four compact courgettes and supply your family with more courgettes than you could eat for the summer." Currently Asda are selling courgette seeds for £2 - and you can get them in the ground now. 'You could choose to put acid compost in there and put four blueberries in there " he said. "Within your first harvest you've made your money back.' 'Equally you could just sow some British native wildflowers, which could be as cheap as £2 to £3 for a packet. 'It will give you a brilliant long run of colour from May through to October, with lots of interest for pollinators. Gardeners' World's Monty Don fears 'decayed' knees from years of gardening could cut short TV career 'You could also create a square metre pond. In the first month you'll have about 10 species in the pond. "A year down the line you'll have 20 plus species and it just goes up and up and up. 'Insect and bees will come and feed from there, you'll support birds, you're supporting the aquatic life itself. 'It doesn't have to be a big space to make a big impact.' If you're inspired to make a difference - you can register your meter to be entered into a Gardeners World prize draw to win a £1k voucher to spend at Crocus or two runner up Crocus prizes of £500. Visit for more information. Gardeners World Live takes place at Birmingham NEC from June 12 - 15. Top tips, news and a great competition to win a £100 Westland plant feed bundle. TOP TIP Salvias are coming into their prime right now - especially the Mexican hardy shrubby ones like Hot Lips, Limelight and Amistad. To ensure you get the best blooms all summer, we've got some top tips from expert William Dyson, from Great Comp Garden in Kent Grow them in pots, or in your borders - they like free draining soil and sunshine. If you give them an extra chop in mid to late of July - cutting a third of the growth- they'll spring back and reward you with tons of flowers until November. Companion plant with perennials to give a cottage garden look Or make a statement in a large pot. Don't let them get too dry - they do like to be watered, Don't feed them with nitrogen plant food because you'll get more leaves and less flowers. Great Comp's summer garden show is on August 9 and 10. NEWS! The Beardy Gardener - an award-winning garden designer, broadcaster and mental health advocate, is hosting his first ever Garden Gathering on June 21 at the Longstock Park Nursery on the Leckford Estate, near Andover. The event supports Andover Mind 's 'Garden for Mind' initiative, a therapeutic green space dedicated to enhancing mental health and wellbeing. The Garden Gathering promises a vibrant day filled with expert-led workshops, live demonstrations, plant sales, and family-friendly activities. For more info visit NEWS! The National Garden Scheme gives visitors unique access to over 3,500 exceptional private gardens across the UK while raising money for nursing and health charities. Visit the website to find a garden near you open this week. WIN! Thanks to Westland - we're giving away two amazing plant feed bundles worth over £100 each. Each one contains Boost Boost All Purpose Granules, plant feed, Big Tom, Rose feed, bug gard and others. To enter visit or write to Sun Westland Boost competition, PO Box 3190, Colchester, Essex, CO2 8GP. Include your name, age, email or phone. UK residents 18+ only. Entries close 11.59pm. June 28, 2025. T&Cs apply. JOB OF THE WEEK You can move a lot of houseplants outside now to make space or give them a bit of a boost with natural light. Water hanging baskets daily, start deadheading roses. TOP TIP - if you, like me, are struggling with blackfly right now - make a spray of washing up liquid (Ecover is best) and water - and give them a good soaking.
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Illegal work arrests double in year as police target 'unscrupulous' employers
Arrests for illegal work have doubled in a year as police focus on "unscrupulous" employers who exploit undocumented migrants, the government officers arrested more than 6,400 people in the past year in raids at businesses across the UK, data released by the Home Office shows. It said the figure is 51% higher than the previous year. It did not provide numbers as to how many arrests led to charges, convictions or said immigration enforcement officials had "intensified" their work to "tackle those abusing the UK immigration system and exploiting vulnerable people". Officers had visited more than 9,000 businesses - among them restaurants, nail bars and construction sites - to check paperwork and working businesses had often subjected migrants to "squalid conditions and illegal working hours" as well as below-minimum Home Office said there were a range of industries exploiting migrant one case in Surrey, officers arrested nine people at a caravan park who had been working as delivery one one major operation in March, officers arrested 36 people at a building site in Belfast's Titanic Quarter. Some had breached visa conditions while others didn't have working Enforcement director Eddy Montgomery said there were many cases where people travelling to the UK were "sold a lie by smuggling gangs that they will be able to live and work freely in the UK."In reality, they often end up facing squalid living conditions, minimal pay and inhumane working hours," he Angela Eagle, the minister for border security and asylum, said the government would "continue to root out unscrupulous employers and disrupt illegal workers who undermine our border security".The government said it had also returned nearly 30,000 people over the past year who did not have the right to be in the has said it is cracking down on illegal migration, setting out its plans in a White Paper to tighten work visas and those overstaying. It scrapped a special visa for care workers introduced during the pandemic, noting that this had been a pathway exploited by was mixed reaction to the plans, with some business sectors decrying the restrictions on work visas, while some Conservative opponents said the reforms didn't go far enough to stop illegal most recent data shows that approximately 44,000 people have entered the UK illegally in the year to March 2025, more than 80% through small boat journeys.
