Nigel Farage - MP for Clacton | Reform Watch
Profile and accountability tracker for Nigel Farage, MP for Clacton. null.
Role: MP for Clacton
Recorded incidents (showing 11-20 of 52)
Nigel Farage warns country is on edge of serious civil disturbance and condemns masked protesters
Category: inflammatory language
Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, said the country was on the edge of serious civil disturbance and described the situation as a national security emergency, while condemning protesters who wore masks and paramilitary-style clothing during anti-migrant demonstrations in Dover and Portsmouth. He also said both governments had failed and argued that voting was the only solution to the issue. Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said an investigation is ongoing to identify offenders responsible for assaults and other criminal offences during the Portsmouth protest, and Downing Street condemned the disorder while emphasising the right to peaceful protest. Daniel Thomas, who led large crowds at the Portsmouth demonstration and is described as an associate of Tommy Robinson, and Mike Tapp, the Labour MP for Dover and Deal who criticised the masked protesters, were publicly linked to the weekend events.
Nigel Farage mocked protesters as audience members pulled hair and struck a heckler
Category: intimidation bullying
Nigel Farage dismissed and mocked protesters who disrupted his keynote speech at the Reform UK conference at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham while a protester was removed from the hall. Footage from the event shows audience members pulling the woman's hair, grabbing her head and an attendee hitting her with a walking stick during the disruption. West Midlands Police said they had not received a direct complaint but asked the woman involved to come forward so officers could carry out enquiries. Reform UK home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf condemned members who pulled the protester's hair, while party chairman Lee Anderson suggested collecting money for the man seen using a walking stick; Nadine Dorries said protesters should not expect gentle treatment. The activist group involved said the protester was considering whether to contact police and the force is seeking further information.
Nigel Farage compares parliamentary standards inquiry to investigations of Donald Trump
Category: inflammatory language
Nigel Farage compared the parliamentary standards inquiry into his failure to register a £5 million gift to the investigations faced by Donald Trump during a BBC interview ahead of Reform UK’s conference. He dismissed the inquiry as unlikely to be fair, alleged a coordinated establishment effort to portray Reform UK members as crooks and suggested any sanction from the standards commissioner would be unjust. Farage is under scrutiny for failing to declare a £5 million gift from donor Christopher Harborne and for further financial support from George Cottrell; the £5 million gift is the subject of an inquiry by the parliamentary standards commissioner. He maintained the gifts were accepted in a personal capacity, said his family had been targeted with threats and experienced debanking, said he expects to be interviewed by the commissioner and said he will remain Reform UK leader at the next election.
Nigel Farage threatens to cut aid and ban visas for Pakistani nationals
Category: xenophobia
Nigel Farage criticised Pakistan for refusing to accept the return of convicted grooming gang ringleader Shabir Ahmed and said that, if he were prime minister, he would cut foreign aid to Pakistan and ban new visas for Pakistani nationals unless Pakistan agreed to take the individual back. He framed the measures as conditional on Pakistan's response to the deportation dispute. The comments targeted an entire nationality in the context of a criminal deportation dispute and were presented as an ultimatum tied to government policy on aid and visas. There is no recorded official consequence in the source material provided and no party response is noted in the source.
Nigel Farage frames investigation into undisclosed £5m donation as people versus the establishment
Category: financial conduct concern
Nigel Farage characterised an investigation into an undisclosed £5m donation he received as a people versus the establishment by-election in Clacton. He presented the contest as an opportunity to oppose the political establishment rather than focusing on the regulatory scrutiny of the donation. The statement followed the opening of an investigation into the £5m gift. Farage framed the matter in political terms, saying the by-election offered a chance to challenge the establishment; the status and outcome of the investigation are not stated.
Nigel Farage proposes bill to remove Commonwealth voting rights and restrict election languages
Category: xenophobia
Nigel Farage published an "Election Integrity Bill" through Reform UK that proposed removing the historic right to vote for Commonwealth citizens, requiring election material to be published only in languages native to the British Isles, and introducing polling-station checks on voters' English ability. The package also included limits on postal voting and measures described by the party as protections against so-called "family voting." Danny Kruger, head of Reform UK's Department for Preparing for Government, defended the proposals as necessary to protect the electoral system. Critics said the measures would exclude many lawful residents and non-English speakers from participating in UK elections and make it harder for migrant communities to access voting; Reform UK sought to have the measures taken as amendments to government legislation but they were unlikely to be adopted.
Danny Kruger says holidaymakers would disenfranchise themselves under postal voting plans
Category: discriminatory remark
Danny Kruger, the Reform MP for East Wiltshire, said people who go on holiday during an election would be disenfranchising themselves under Reform UK proposals to curb postal voting and that voters would be required to vote in person unless they were unable to do so. He made the remarks during an interview in which he set out the party's approach to limiting postal votes to those judged unable to vote in person. The comments were made alongside wider Reform proposals to remove the right of qualifying Commonwealth citizens to vote in UK elections and to ban campaign material in foreign languages. Labour criticised the party for apparent hypocrisy, saying Nigel Farage had voted by post at the 2024 general election, and the Liberal Democrats' Cabinet Office spokeswoman Lisa Smart described the remarks as out of touch.
Nigel Farage event organisers investigated over alleged unlicensed celebration
Category: other
Nigel Farage's victory celebration in Tendring was held as an invite-only event organised by Reform UK. Tendring District Council opened an investigation after organisers were refused a Late Temporary Event Notice because the application was submitted too late. Reform UK said the gathering was a private, invite-only event that did not require a licence and that it had applied for a licence on a precautionary basis. Tendring District Council is investigating whether the organisers breached licensing law; if found to have done so the organisers could face fines or custodial sentences. Nigel Farage did not attend the election count.
Nigel Farage claimed a 'specific, credible' threat, police said none
Category: factual inaccuracy
Nigel Farage said he could not attend the Clacton by-election count because of a "specific, credible threat" to his safety. Essex Police said no such warning was given and said the concern was traced to heated social media posts rather than a targeted plot. Farage won the Clacton by-election and returned to Parliament; his decision to avoid the count was criticised after the police statement. He also blamed migrants for local housing shortages, a claim questioned alongside reporting that Clacton has a comparatively low migrant population.
Nigel Farage's party blames mass immigration for hosepipe bans
Category: xenophobia
Nigel Farage’s Reform UK blamed mass immigration for hosepipe bans and drought conditions in England and Wales, saying the Tories had "imported 12 million people over fourteen years" and that population growth placed huge strain on infrastructure. The party published a policy paper proposing to scrap targets to reduce public water use, lower the threshold for reservoir projects to be treated as nationally significant, and build more reservoirs to avoid hosepipe bans. Deputy leader Richard Tice has previously rejected the role of human activity in climate change and Reform has pledged to scrap UK climate targets and increase fossil fuel use if it enters government. The party framed infrastructure strain from immigration as the cause of water shortages rather than citing water management, investment or climate impacts, and set out policy changes consistent with that position; the claim and the climate stance have attracted public scrutiny given the scientific consensus on human-driven warming.