Alan Lake (English Defence League)

Alan Lake is the pseudonym used by Alan Ayling,[1] a computer expert from Highgate, London. Until 2011 he was a director of Pacific Capital Investment Management.[1] Ayling was described by the media in 2011 as a millionaire,[2] and as the "chief financier" of the English Defence League (EDL), which Lake reportedly "fiercely denied".[3] He did admit to having "given some money to help some EDL things happen" in his first television interview, on Norwegian TV 2.[4] According to then EDL leader Tommy Robinson, Ayling had never been a member of the EDL, and the EDL had not received funding from him. Responding to media claims saying the opposite, Robinson said that "he [Ayling] spoke at two demos and he wore a suit, and all of a sudden he was a millionaire funder."[5]

Lake was considered a central figure in organising international anti-Islamist contacts.[4] Lake spoke at a seminar on Islamisation in Malmö, Sweden, in 2009, organised by the Sweden Democrats.[3][6] Lake has since said that he continues to maintain good relations with many of the party's members and that he is a good friend of MP Kent Ekeroth.[4] He has considered that the state "might as well" execute Islamists who seek to impose sharia law in the UK,[4] and according to The Guardian he called for discussion about killing the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Prime Minister David Cameron and the deputy PM Nick Clegg for allegedly supporting sharia law for Britain.[7] Ayling also founded the far-right "4 Freedoms" website.[2][8]

Lake rarely speaks with the press.[2] According to Professor Nigel Copsey, Lake represented the more "respectable" intellectual wing of the EDL.[9] In October 2011, Norwegian police formally investigated Lake to discover any potential ideological influence he may have had on mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik.[10] He was awarded 5,000 euros in damages by a Maltese court from Paul Adam Cinato for defamation of character after Cinato blogged that Lake was Breivik's mentor.[11] In January 2012, after the true identity of "Alan Lake" was revealed, Ayling was suspended from his management post at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in the City of London.[12]

References
  1. McSmith, Andy (12 December 2011). "Tycoons back new far-right grouping". The Independent. London. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
  2. Briggs, Billy (30 July 2011). "Inside Europe's network of race hate". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 31 July 2011.
  3. Townsend, Mark; Traynor, Ian (30 July 2011). "Norway attacks: How far right views created Anders Behring Breivik". The Guardian. Oslo/Brussels. Retrieved 31 July 2011.
  4. Skjærstad, Bent (7 April 2011). "Anti-islamister bygger et verdensomspennende nettverk". TV 2 (in Norwegian). London. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
  5. "EDL leader slams academics' report". Luton Today. 5 October 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
  6. Copsey, Nigel. "The English Defence League: Challenging Our Country and Our Values of Social Inclusion Fairness and Equality" (PDF). Faith Matters: 16. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. Doward, Jamie; Burger, Vicus; Burton, James (30 July 2011). "EDL leader demanded debate on killing David Cameron and archbishop". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 31 July 2011.
  8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 10 March 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. Copsey, Nigel (2010). "The English Defence League: Challenging Our Country and Our Values of Social Inclusion Fairness and Equality" (PDF). Faith Matters: 15. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  10. "Bullet holes mark Norway islet, officials voice regret". Reuters. 3 October 2011.
  11. Chris Mangion (28 January 2014). "Right-winger defamed as 'Breivik mentor', awarded €5,000 in damages". Malta Today. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  12. Shifrin, Tash (31 January 2012). "EDL strategist 'Alan Lake' suspended from manager job in City". Unite Against Fascism. Retrieved 22 May 2012.
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