An attendee performed a Nazi salute near the end of a ‘Port and Policy’ event hosted by City University Conservative Society on 13 March 2025. KCL Conservative Association (KCLCA) and Queen Mary University Conservative Society (QMCS) were also in attendance, alongside the LSESU Conservative Society in an unofficial capacity.
EDITOR NOTE: THIS ARTICLE WAS UPDATED TO INCLUDE AN UPDATED STATEMENT FROM AN OFFICIAL LSESU CONSERVATIVE SOCIETY SPOKESPERSON. – 16:47PM 21/03/25
Towards the end of the Port & Policy evening, Roar observed an attendee from LSESU Conservative Society perform a Nazi salute twice.
The audience responded with laughter and Roar observed no public demonstrations of condemnation, as well as no immediate action taken by the event organisers in response to the incident.
Despite an initial denial that the salute was met with laughter, the KCLCA President later clarified, “Some laughter may have occurred amongst a few audience members, but was mainly also met by dismay.”
He continued, “I was reminded by the other presidents that the chair did indeed tell the individual to stop and even gave a statement regarding inclusivity.” Roar observed no such intervention.
Since the event, KCLCA, QMCS and City University Conservative Society have formally distanced themselves from the LSESU Conservative Society and have confirmed they will no longer be welcome at their events.
In a statement to Roar, QMCS stated: “Actions such as a fascist salute are inexcusable, QMCS condemns this behaviour in the strongest terms.”
They continued: “Members of their [LSESU Tories] suspended leadership were present and made no suggestion that this was abnormal behaviour.”
They later went on to say that hopes for a renewed partnership “have obviously been dashed”.
Roar was informed that this was the first attendance of LSESU Conservative members, since the society formally removed itself from the larger London University Conservative (LUC) collective in October of last year.
The society have also been formally suspended from the LSE Student’s Union.
LSESU Conservative Society told Roar:
“The LSE Conservatives wholeheartedly condemn the Nazi salute that was made and unequivocally oppose Nazi ideology in all its forms. We believe in upholding values of respect, tolerance, and civility, and we reject any actions or symbols of racism, antisemitism, and hatred. We remain committed to fostering a respectful and productive environment for all conservatives.
We maintain committed to rebuilding our relationship with the LUC that the previous president ended. We strongly value the importance of collaboration and partnership between conservative student groups and deeply regret the damage caused.”
LSESU Conservative Society Spokesperson
This incident followed a previous Port & Policy event that ended with the display of a fascist armband last year.
With historic links to the Nazi Germany, the salute carries connotations strongly associated with antisemitism and the Holocaust.
A spokesperson from the KCL Jewish Society (JSOC) told Roar:
“We are deeply disturbed by an incident that took place last Thursday evening at an event held by City Tories. Such incidents exhibit all of what is wrong with our institutions. We implore the LSE Conservative Society to take a firm stance against this and all forms of hatred.
Given the unprecedented rise in anti-Jew behaviour, it is no surprise that Jewish students do not feel safe stepping foot on their own university campus. The identified student may benefit in a history class on WWII; education is a virtue.
The JSOC understands that the aforementioned type of behaviour is allowed to flourish through the mixing of a toxic culture with incompetent leadership.”
The event was held in the College Building on the campus of City, University of London. The debate motions, which were shared on Instagram, were ‘This house believes Russia is the greatest threat to the United Kingdom’ and ‘This house would welcome Rupert Lowe into the Conservative Party.’
A spokesperson for City University Conservative Society told Roar:
“The City Conservative Society unequivocally condemns this action [the Nazi salute]. The use of such gestures is completely unacceptable and does not align with the values of our society.
It was unknown that the individual would use such a gesture, and while London University Conservatives Port & Policy debates often involve individuals arguing positions that they may not personally hold, there are clear boundaries of decency and respect that must always be upheld.
Despite LSE Conservative Society removing themselves from the London University Conservatives, we welcomed them to our event in good faith, believing that all attendees would uphold the standards of respectful discourse.
It is now clear that the LSE Conservative Society do not uphold the standards that are expected of LUC members and we are therefore unsurprised they have been suspended by the LSE Student Union.
In light of this incident, we have decided that LSECS will not be permitted to attend future City Conservative Society events until further notice.”
Beyond the Nazi salute, there were other controversies during the evening.
Responding to a statement that the UK had too many Russian migrants, one speaker decried there was a “flood of Islamic migrants coming onto our shores.”
The speaker continued to state that “we’ve had our borders invaded”.
The use of the term ‘Islamic’ refers to anything relating to the religion of Islam but has been commonly conflated with the term ‘Islamist’, which denotes somebody “that believes Islam should influence political institutions”, according to the Cambridge Dictionary.
Roar contacted KCL Islamic Society for comment, but did not receive a statement.
A speaker also made transphobic comments, claiming that, “We’ve had our children ‘transed’ [sic]”. The audience responded to the comment with laughter.
Another speaker argued, “We need a return to the ideals of Margaret Thatcher and Enoch Powell”. This is the second time a Port & Policy event has hosted speakers referencing Powell positively.
Enoch Powell, remembered for his Rivers of Blood speech, is one of the most controversial political figures in British history, who espoused an expressly racial, anti-immigrant form of politics.
The evening coincides with several cases of high-profile alt-right figures in American politics appearing to perform Nazi salutes.
In January 2025, Elon Musk appeared to perform a Nazi salute at a President Trump victory rally. Later in February, former Trump advisor Steve Bannon was accused of giving a Nazi salute while speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).
Both assert that their gesture was not a Nazi salute, their defenders have evoked the term ‘Roman salute’ to characterise the action instead.
QMCS, KCLCA and University College London Conservative Society will host a Port & Policy event later today, stating on Instagram that “Members from other universities who are not considered invited will be asked to leave”.
Roar has informed the Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ), KCLSU and City St George’s, University of London but has not received a formal comment.
