Tommy Robinson, aka Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, has launched a fresh legal bid to slash his 18-month jail sentence. The far-right activist claims that being stuck in segregation is wrecking his mental health.
Robinson’s Legal Team Sounds Alarm Over Mental Health
The 42-year-old was locked up in October 2024 after admitting 10 breaches of a High Court injunction. The order banned him from repeating false claims about Syrian refugee Jamal Hijazi, a case Robinson lost in 2020.
Speaking via video from HMP Woodhill in Milton Keynes" data-wpil-keyword-link="linked">Milton Keynes, his barrister Alisdair Williamson KC told the Court of Appeal that prolonged segregation is taking a severe toll on Robinson’s mental health.
“He is being kept safe by the authorities in segregation,” Williamson said, “but being kept safe is making him ill — and more ill than Mr Justice Johnson could have foreseen.”
Williamson revealed Robinson suffers from ADHD and complex PTSD, conditions worsened by isolation. He argued this new evidence should push for a bigger cut to his sentence — beyond the initial four months already trimmed.
From Belmarsh to Woodhill, Locked Up and Cut Off
Robinson started his stretch at HMP Belmarsh but was quickly moved to Woodhill after clashes with Muslim inmates on day one. Fearing for his safety, prison bosses stuck him in segregation, cutting him off from other prisoners.
He previously lost a legal fight over that isolation. This time, his team insists the mental damage is an unforeseen blow that warrants chopping the sentence.
Government Slams Appeal as ‘Defiance’
Not having it, Aidan Eardley KC, for the Solicitor General, slammed the attempt to reduce Robinson’s time. The sentence was both punitive and meant to coerce future compliance with the court order.
“He remains defiantly in breach of the order,” Eardley said. “He is asking for the court’s indulgence without any sign of compliance.”
Eardley also scoffed at claims that jail conditions were too harsh:
“There is no legal basis to argue that unforeseen conditions imposed by prison authorities justify a reduced sentence.”
He even mocked Robinson’s complaints about TV restrictions in segregation, noting he has one but can’t watch GB News – a demand that raised eyebrows in court.
Drama in the Courtroom
During the hearing, Robinson held up a handwritten sign accusing the HMP Woodhill governor of lying. Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr cut through immediately:
“We will ignore that, thank you very much indeed.”
The Backstory: False Claims and Libel
The injunction stems from a 2020 libel ruling after Robinson falsely accused then-teen Jamal Hijazi of attacking schoolgirls. This followed a viral video showing Hijazi being assaulted at Almondbury Community School in Huddersfield back in 2018.
Robinson was hit with a £100,000 damages bill and ordered to stop repeating the false allegations. But in 2023, he was found to have deliberately breached the order, including by releasing a film titled Silenced and repeating claims publicly and online.
What’s Next?
The Court of Appeal panel — Lady Chief Justice Carr, Lord Justice Edis, and Lord Justice Warby — will rule on Robinson’s appeal in due course. For now, the firebrand remains behind bars, set for release on July 26, 2025.
