Nigel Farage latest: Reform UK leader resigns as MP to force by-election after donation scandal – UK Times

Nigel Farage has announced his resignation as MP, triggering a by-election in Clacton on Sea.

The Reform UK leader said he would be fighting the by-election in the constituency, in order to give voters a chance to “stick two fingers up to the establishment”.

He said in a statement: “I will fight to continue the political revolution reform has started.”

Nigel Farage has said he has ‘never been angrier’ in his life as he claims journalists approached his daughter at her home.

The Reform UK leader earlier accused Sky News of “harassing” his family.

Sky News said it had not contacted anyone from Mr Farage’s family about the story.

But the Reform UK leader later said this was “an outright lie”, accusing the broadcaster of having “hounded” his daughter at home.

In a statement on Tuesday, he said: “I will not tolerate intimidation of my family.

“Am I angry? I’ve never been angrier in my life.”

Nigel Farage suggested “the establishment” had chosen to use “foul means” to beat Reform UK as he said he had “not broken the law in any way at all”.

In a televised statement, the party leader pointed to electoral gains it made in May and said: “It seems to me that the establishment have now decided that they can’t beat us fairly, so they’ve chosen to use foul means.

“Let me be absolutely clear, after the furore and the media pile-on, well, not just the media, the other political parties too – let me be absolutely clear – I have done nothing wrong.

“I have not broken the law in any way at all. I have not misused public money, and you know, for the first two years of being an MP, my personal MP expenses are zero, not of course that you’ll read about that in mainstream media.”

Nigel Farage has insisted he’s done “nothing wrong” as he delivers a statement about his political future.

The statement comes amid intense scrutiny over a series donation scandals.

Criticising the “establishment” and “mainstream media” he said: “Let me absolutely clear. I’ve done nothing wrong. I haven’t broken the law.”

Nigel Farage has begun delivering his statement on his future in public life.

The Reform UK leader is speaking mid speculation he could resign over a series of donation scandals.

The statement is being streamed by Reform UK, with no media present to ask questions.

Nigel Farage is expected to make a statement on his “future in public life” imminently.

The Reform UK leader confirmed earlier he would be making an announcement at 2pm.

The statement is being streamed by Reform UK, with no media present to ask questions.

We will bring you the latest updates here.

The Independent’s Whitehall Editor Kate Devlin writes:

Pollsters already predict a ‘Burnham bounce’ in the polls for Labour once the PM-in-waiting takes over.

But there were question marks over whether it would be enough to catch the party that has led the polls for more than a year – Reform UK.

However, were the party to lose its most high-profile member and leader, it could start to lose support at the same time as Labour gains it.

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch told a press conference that it is “not for me to judge” whether Nigel Farage had broken the rules.

But she criticised the way he and his supporters have been making threats to the press over the coverage of his scandals.

She said: “What we are seeing right now is the sort of chaos which we would see under a Farage government. I am working very, very hard to make sure that we don’t have a reform government.

“Our win in Aberdeen South showed that when Conservatives have a good economic plan… what surprised me most was what he said on Sky News…where he was being asked questions, and then talked about Levison, so he’s hinting at press regulation.

“For all of the criticism and the attacks, and I would even say abuse that I got from the press, I never once recommended us curbing our free press… I’m very worried about a reform government using government power to control the press.”

The Independent’s political editor David Maddox writes:

After arriving back in the UK on Monday in a foul mood, lashing out at the Sky News journalists waiting for him in the airport, a tired and angry looking Nigel Farage is set to give an emergency press conference on his future.

There has been mounting speculation outside Reform and concerns from within the party that he could simply walk away, although allies have told The Independent that he may just “take a break”, as the pressure takes its toll.

But in truth Reform has wasted two years of riding high in the polls building very little beyond him as a potential prime minister, meaning that without him on the scene the party is in severe trouble. Recent history tells us exactly what happens when Mr Farage so much as steps away.

When Mr Farage stepped down as Reform UK leader the first time in a bid to concentrate on his GB News career, Richard Tice as leader got the unfortunate nickname of “Mr 7 per cent” – the highest he could get in the polls. Only under Mr Farage did the popularity explode.

It is worth noting that Tice would again be temporary leader if Farage takes a break.

Before that, when he quit as UKIP leader after the 2016 referendum, the party nosedived as it went through a succession of alternatives.

So badly damaged was UKIP that, when Mr Farage came back, he had to invent a whole new party as a platform.

So no wonder there is panic in some circles of Reform about Mr Farage taking a break or stepping aside. Without him, they are nothing.

But the truth is that they are a dwindling force with him, too. A poll last week suggested that, with Andy Burnham as leader and prime minister, Labour may sneak ahead of Reform for the first time in almost two years.

And while the Tory brand is still damaged, their leader Kemi Badenoch is the most popular – or least unpopular – political leader in the UK.

It is fair to assume that, if Reform is no longer the party of the right that can beat Labour, then maybe people will start looking again at the Tories.