REVEALED: Anti-vax group’s links to far right
Probe finds extremists Members told to wear are ‘infiltrating movement’ black and prepare for ‘war’
BRITAIN’S most militant antivaccine movement is being infiltrated by the far right, according to a HOPE not Hate probe.
Alpha Team Assemble has held training sessions for hundreds of members, who are told to dress in black and prepare for “war”.
Leader Danny Glass, a former Royal Fusilier, told an ATA training meeting in Staffordshire in January his plan was to “take it to the Old Bill – it’s not for the faint hearted, but we’re going to go and f**king do ’em”.
On its numerous chat groups, ATA insists on “no weapons, no violence, no racism, no hate speech”.
But HOPE not Hate has found links between ATA and the Independent Nationalist Network, a group including known extremists.
Former BNP organiser Richard Lumby is described by HOPE not Hate as the unofficial leader of the Independent Nationalist Network.
Lumby told members on a group chat that INN’s “main direction” is “resistance against global cabals”, vowing to “get involved in the groups taking it to them, particularly on the vaccine issue”.
Members such as Lumby and “Anglo Joe” joined the 200 ATA members in Staffordshire for “self defence training” to “make connections”.
Anglo Joe wrote in January he had “just got off the phone with Danny Glass” and claimed they “agreed to move forward shoulder to shoulder”.
Glass joined the Independent Nationalist Network’s internal chat, which was monitored by HOPE not Hate, stating he is “not a political person... but feel it’s time for all of us to connect and support each other”.
Glass told INN members the “right wing movement” is “not my cup of tea”. He commented on some INN members having 1488 in usernames and similar codes used by neo-Nazis, which he said “doesn’t apply to me but each to there [sic] own”.
We’ll take it to the Old Bill. It’s not for the faint hearted DANNY GLASS DURING MEETING WITH MEMBERS
HITLER
Campaigners say “14” refers to the 14-word slogan “we must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children”, while “88” stands for “Heil Hitler”, (H being the eighth letter of the alphabet).
The INN describes itself as a group for the “indigenous people of Britain”.
Despite claiming “I have no racism or hate of other cultures in me”, Glass appears happy to court the support of the far right for the ATA.
Inviting INN members to an ATA meet-up in the Midlands, he said: “Be good to see the blokes that came to our last one... bring some friends.”
On encrypted messaging service Telegram, INN member Andrew Barnes, based in Dudley, expressed support for Nazi terror groups.
Barnes, who called the Christchurch mosque terrorist “a good lad”, joined ATA chat groups last month.
ATA figures attended a January demo in Telford, Shrops, organised by anti-Muslim activist Tommy Robinson. An ATA member wrote “Robinson is a friggin hero”. David Lawrence, from anti-racism group HOPE Not Hate, told the Mirror: “The fact Alpha Team appears to practise an open-door policy towards the far right is concerning.”
Details of the investigation are in HOPE Not Hate’s annual State of Hate report, released this week.
ATA was formed in 2021 and has 1,000 subscribers on Telegram, alongside 20 local groupings. As well as sharing anti-vaccine conspiracies, the groups call for demos at vaccine centres and schools.
At a “training” meet in January, instructor “Gary” told members they are fighting a “global war” being “waged on its people by its governments”. They were drilled in joining a formation to break through police lines, as well as one-on-one sparring.
Glass later insisted the group “will always remain lawful” and that: “The training and drills we do are noncombative and are in no way to be linked to extremism.”
Neither Glass nor Barnes responded to a Mirror request for comment.