Tag: UK Independence Party

The ex-UKIP leader is taking over from Catherine Blaiklock, who quit over what he said were "horrible and intolerant" comments on Twitter about Islam. Mr Farage said the party was currently a "virtual" entity but would mobilise at short notice if the UK ended up taking part in European elections. He said Leave voters "betrayed" by the political classes needed a voice. Mr Farage led UKIP three times over the course of 20 years but quit the party earlier this year, accusing its leadership of associating with the far right and condoning Islamophobic views. Mr Farage said he was unaware of Ms Blaiklock's Twitter history when they set up the party together and she was right to stand down for posting "angry, intolerant stuff". "She was never intended to be a long-term leader," he told Radio 4's Today. He said the Brexit Party would field candidates from across the political spectrum in the event that the UK failed to reach a Brexit agreement before the latest deadline and ended up taking part in European elections in May. "It is at the moment a virtual party," Mr Farage said. "It is a website. We haven't even launched... Our trust has been betrayed by politicians and if we fight these elections, it will be a chance to say what we think."

Brexiters lobby for European veto of article 50 extension Read more Verhofstadt claimed Farage wanted an extension to article 50 in order to keep Britain in the EU, so he can continue to have his MEP’s salary and transfer it into an offshore company. The former Ukip leader later told the Guardian: “Mr Verhofstadt is just plain wrong. I have never been the beneficiary of any offshore company.” As well as having had a show on LBC radio, Farage has been a regular political commentator on international television channels since stepping down as Ukip leader in 2016. Farage, who has criticised others for avoiding tax, has come under fire in the past for using Thorn in the Side Ltd to reduce the tax bill on his media appearances. The MEP has previously admitted setting up a trust fund in an offshore tax haven that could have enabled him to cut his tax bill. Farage, who condemned tax avoiders in a speech to the European parliament, said in 2013 that he paid a tax adviser to set up the Farage Family Educational Trust 1654 in the Isle of Man. He has denied benefiting from the arrangement and said he made a loss. He claimed the “only neat solution” was to leave the EU on 29 March, calling for any extension request from Britain to be vetoed. All MEPs are entitled to a transition allowance linked to their length of service in the parliament to bridge their move into a new job. MEPs who have served one term could get a maximum pre-tax payment of €50,900 (£43,575), while an MEP in office since 1999 could receive €169,680 before tax.

MPs across the political divide should "abandon outrage" and attempt to "forge a consensus" over Brexit, Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd has said. Theresa May travelled to Brussels earlier this week to make a special plea to EU leaders after delaying Tuesday's Commons vote on the deal, in anticipation of a heavy defeat. 'Serious trouble' Many of her own MPs are concerned that the controversial "backstop" plan in the withdrawal agreement, which is aimed at preventing a hard border in Northern Ireland, would keep the UK tied to EU rules indefinitely and limit its ability to strike trade deals. AdChoices Ms Rudd said she supported Mrs May's deal and advocated assembling a "coalition" - potentially reaching out to opposition parties to avoid what she called "the rocks of no deal". She said the country "will face serious trouble" if MPs "dig in against the prime minister's deal". Mr Farage added the treatment of Mrs May in Brussels this week had been a "shaming moment" for both the UK and the EU and that the PM's Brexit deal was now "dead". He said: "Our UK friends need to say what they want, instead of asking us to say what we want... because this debate is sometimes nebulous and imprecise." Mrs May said that, despite reports that the EU was unwilling to consider further clarification, she had talked to European Council President Donald Tusk, Mr Juncker and others, which "have shown that further clarification and discussion following the council's conclusions is in fact possible". But Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: "The last 24 hours have confirmed that Theresa May's Brexit deal is dead in the water. "Rather than ploughing ahead and dangerously running down the clock, the prime minister needs to put her deal to a vote next week so Parliament can take back control."

Nigel Farage has quit Ukip after 25 years, saying the party he led to its greatest election successes was now unrecognisable because of the “fixation” with the anti-Muslim policies of its leader, Gerard Batten. Farage, who took Ukip to third place by number of votes in the 2015 election and significantly shaped the ground for the Brexit referendum, said he was dismayed by Batten’s policies and his decision to appoint the far-right campaigner Tommy Robinson as an adviser. Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Farage condemned Batten’s decision to throw Ukip’s support behind an anti-Brexit demonstration in London on Sunday organised by Robinson and his associates, saying it was likely to “inspire violence and thuggish behaviour”. “My heart sinks as I reflect on the idea that they may be seen by some as representative of the cause for which I have campaigned for so much of my adult life,” wrote Farage, who regularly contributes a column to the newspaper. There is a huge space for a Brexit party in British politics, but it won’t be filled by Ukip.” Farage, who tried and failed seven times to become a Ukip MP and is still an MEP for the party, has repeatedly criticised Batten’s focus on anti-Muslim policies and rhetoric, and warned at the weekend that he might quit. Amid wider discontent at the stance of Batten, who has described Islam as a “death cult” and called for policies including Muslim-only prisons, Ukip’s national executive met at the weekend to consider his future as leader. While members made it clear that they did not want to allow Robinson to join Ukip – as the founder of the far-right English Defence League, he is barred under current rules – a vote of no confidence in Batten was defeated. Farage’s announcement is likely to prompt a further wave of departures from Ukip, which has lost three MEPs in recent weeks over its new direction. In the latter he has been slightly less discriminating, for example on the far-right website Infowars, which propagates conspiracy theories and has argued that the 7 July attacks in London were faked. During an appearance on Infowars earlier this year, Farage told host Alex Jones that leftwingers in Europe were “allied with radical Islam” and “want to abolish the nation state”.

Ukip’s leader, Gerard Batten, has been strongly backed by its national executive. The move will prevent yet another civil war for the party, but possibly hastening the exit of Nigel Farage, who has publicly despaired at the current hard-right stance. Batten, a vehement proponent of anti-Muslim policies, who has described Islam as a “death cult”, has sparked significant internal dissent over the direction he has taken the party and particularly over his decision to appoint the far-right street activist Tommy Robinson as an adviser. However, members “voted overwhelmingly against a motion of no confidence” in the leader, a Ukip tweet said. Third Ukip MEP quits over party's courtship of Tommy Robinson Read more A later statement from the party, however, said the national executive “does not endorse the appointment of Tommy Robinson in any advisory role”, adding that he remained banned from joining Ukip. The march has been condemned by Farage, Ukip’s two-time leader and defining figure, who said on Sunday that the party backing such an event would give the impression of “people who were racists within the party”. Farage said on his LBC radio show: “If this march goes ahead with Gerard Batten as the leader of Ukip, then Ukip becomes the new BNP.” Robinson, who founded the English Defence League street protest group and has been jailed several times, was “somebody who attracts around him a group of thugs,” Farage said. It has emerged that Thomas, who styles himself Danny Thommo, was jailed for two years in 2016 for his part in a bungled kidnap attempt in Hampshire. Thomas was among a gang who tried and failed to pull a man from his home over a supposed robbery debt. They did not wear masks, one lived on the same street as the victim, and another later apologised on Facebook, saying they had targeted the wrong person.

Jerome Corsi, a rightwing author and conspiracy theorist, has been subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury as part of Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Corsi, an associate of the longtime Trump adviser Roger Stone, was asked to appear at 9am in Washington on Friday, according to his attorney, David Gray. “We intend to cooperate fully with the special counsel’s office and we suspect that the focus of the questions will be about my client’s communications with Roger Stone,” Gray said in an email. Corsi noted to his followers three times that agents had taken Malloch’s cellphone, warning: “Ted OUT OF CONTACT”. That evening, Corsi joined an “emergency broadcast” on InfoWars, the far-right conspiracy website, to discuss Malloch’s detention. Stone has said that he, Corsi and Malloch dined together at a New York steak restaurant during 2016 but denied the meeting related to the election. Stone has made contradictory statements about being in contact with Assange during the campaign. Stone tweeted on 21 August 2016 that “it will soon [be John] Podesta's time in the barrel”. Several have testified to the grand jury, including Stone’s protege Sam Nunberg, his former social media adviser Jason Sullivan, and his housemate Kristin Davis. Randy Credico, a radio DJ and comedian previously identified by Stone as his go-between for communications with Assange, is also scheduled to testify before the grand jury on Friday, following a subpoena from Mueller’s team.

Former UK Independence Party leader reacts to the president's comments on Prime Minister Theresa May. FOX News Channel (FNC) is a 24-hour all-encompassing news service dedicated to delivering breaking news as well as political and business news. The number one…

UKIP has officially appointed a 6lb gammon joint as its new leader after successfully ousting Henry Bolton. With UKIP leadership becoming something of a hot potato, the party elected to choose a solid slab of gammon to revitalise their waning fortunes. The move is being seen as a masterstroke amongst political circles. ‘UKIP has always been immensely popular amongst gammon faced men and, by electing an actual gammon to leadership, they should return in droves to support the party,’ said one political analyst. The gammon has already pledged to build seawalls all around Britain, effectively cutting it off from the rest of the world. It has also said that most problems can be solved with a nuclear bomb. Even Nigel Farage seems impressed with the gammon. ‘Isn’t it a thing of beauty? So big, so juicy, so pink. And I’m sure it’d go well with some roast veg and gravy.

UKIP members who issued a vote of no-confidence in leader Henry Bolton have been told to ‘get over it’ as he won his leadership bid and do-overs should never been given any credence. Bolton has refused to stand down as leader of the struggling party, which its six current members evenly split on which way the party should turn. ‘We made a mistake by electing him. We deserve another chance to make things right,’ said one member. But another member told us: ‘An election is a sacred thing. You can’t just go changing your mind based on new facts and evidence. That way madness lies.’ The anti-Bolton brigade are being called ‘sore losers’ and urged to ‘get over it’ for the sake of part unity. Meanwhile, former UKIP leader Nigel Farage is calling for a second Brexit referendum after realising he’ll be out of a cushy job if Britain actually leaves the EU. ‘You people weren’t actually meant to vote for Brexit, you idiots. Now I have nothing to complain about,’ complained Farage on his radio show.

Mr Bolton, 54, faces a crunch meeting today to decide his future in the wake of The Mail on Sunday’s revelations last week that his lover, Jo Marney, had sent racist messages about Meghan Markle. Mr Farage’s allies believe that if Bolton is forced out, it will trigger the collapse of the party – leaving a gap for ‘Ukip 2.0’. It comes as this newspaper can also disclose that Farage’s former mistress was part of a plot to try to force Mr Bolton to resign over the racist texts scandal. After our report appeared, Annabelle Fuller – whose secret 12-year relationship with married Mr Farage ended in 2016 – leaked other online messages from Ms Marney in which she joked about the sexual abuse of babies. Ms Marney was suspended from the party for sending messages saying that Prince Harry’s fiancee would ‘taint’ the Royals with her ‘seed’ and pave the way for a ‘black king’. In response, Mr Bolton claimed to have ended the ‘romantic’ side of the relationship – only to then be spotted enjoying a dinner with Ms Marney. It is heavily in debt and would struggle to afford the contest. The new party would be chaired by former Ukip donor Arron Banks, while Mr Farage could become president. Its main policy would be to keep up pressure for a ‘hard Brexit’. A source close to Mr Farage said: ‘Nigel has always said that he would return if Brexit appeared to be under threat.’ When asked about the new party plans if Ukip collapses, a spokesman for Mr Farage said: ‘No comment’.