Messerschmidt Loses Libel Case: Court Says Lidegaard Was Free to Accuse DF of Wanting to Deport “Thousands”

Three sentences spoken at a debate in Randers last November ended with a clear verdict on Friday 16 October: Martin Lidegaard is not guilty of libel. The Frederiksberg District Court rejected every claim brought by Morten Messerschmidt, leader of the Danish People’s Party (DF).

At a Democracy Day debate in Randers on 10 November 2025, Lidegaard, who leads Radikale Venstre, said of DF’s immigration policy that “one wants to intern and deport thousands of fellow citizens just because they have a different faith or a different skin colour from most of us in this room”. Messerschmidt sued over that remark and two others and asked the court to declare them defamatory.

“Jeg er selvfølgelig glad. Det er en fuldstændig utvetydig afgørelse, hvor der siges, at jeg var i min gode ret til at sige, som jeg gjorde.”

“Of course I am pleased. It is a completely unambiguous ruling which says that I was fully entitled to say what I said.”

— Martin Lidegaard, leader of the Social Liberals (Radikale Venstre), to Ritzau

The judges: “a debate of substantial public interest”

The court disagreed. It stressed that Lidegaard, as a member of the Folketing, has a “particularly far-reaching freedom of expression”, and found that his words “must be regarded as made as part of a public debate on matters of substantial public interest”. Lidegaard also quotes the ruling as saying a factual basis for his statements had been shown that “can be regarded as sufficient”. The case had been heard on 18 August, when both party leaders turned up in person.

Messerschmidt told TV 2 on Friday that he will not appeal. On the right, the verdict landed badly: on X, @FrFrederikke argued the court had only let Lidegaard off because free speech outweighed the damage to Messerschmidt’s reputation. The practical result is simple: in Danish political debate, harsh claims about an opponent’s policy now have a district-court precedent behind them.