Nigel Farage was told by a senior Reform official that he was “protecting” a high-profile mayoral candidate accused of making racists comments about David Lammy, an undercover investigation has revealed.
asserted
investigation → tell → Lammy
The latest footage from an undercover investigation by ITV also shows Sarah Pochin, one of two female MPs for Reform, complaining that other party officials “are so fucking chauvinistic” and that “they just exclude you if you are a woman”.
asserted
you → show → you
Other footage shows Farage himself discussing the case of Chris Parry, a retired rear admiral picked to contest Hampshire and the Solent mayoral election for the party.
asserted
Farage → show → party
The party stood by Parry for months after it emerged that he had said the former foreign secretary should “go home to the Caribbean” last year, and suggested that at least eight other politicians from minority ethnic backgrounds do not have a primary loyalty towards the UK.
uncertain
politicians → stand → UK
However, while Reform eventually suspended him in March after the Guardian revealed other remarks by Parry, clips from an ITV documentary show Farage pushing back against senior advisers who said the candidate had to be sacked.
asserted
candidate → suspend → advisers
They included Ed Sumner, Reform’s head of communications, who had told another press officer in an earlier disucussion that Parry was “clearly a racist”.
asserted
Parry → include → disucussion
“He needs to go, I’m getting rid of him,” Sumner was filmed saying when the controversy broke last December.
asserted
controversy → need → him
However, Parry was still the candidate three weeks later, while Farage told a press conference that the candidate could stay if he apologised.
uncertain
he → tell → conference
In a conversation between Farage and Sumner, which was recorded by the undercover reporter, the Reform leader said that Parry “must apologise to Lammy” and was told that a text had been written for the candidate.
“He must do it and move on …
asserted
He → record → it
Tell him that from me,” Farage said, to which Sumner said: “You’re protecting him.”
asserted
You → tell → him
To laughter, Farage replied: “It’s showing a bit of … bit of sorrow.
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It → reply → sorrow
Look, ‘I’m sorry’ is probably a good thing to hear.
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I → look → ?
Trouble is he’s a rear admiral.
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he → ’ → ?
That’s the problem.”
asserted
That → ’ → ?
Parry was suspended on 26 March after the Guardian reported that he had described members of a Jewish neighbourhood watch group as “cosplayers” and likened them to “Islamists on horseback”.
asserted
he → suspend → horseback
Bridget Phillipson, the Labour party chair, said these “latest shocking and deeply disturbing revelations go right to the top of Reform”, adding: “Nigel Farage needs to wake up and realise the buck stops with him.
asserted
buck → say → him
He also must urgently explain why he allegedly stood by a blatant racist instead of kicking him out of his party.”
uncertain
he → explain → party
The full ITV documentary, Undercover: A Year in Reform, airs on Sunday.
asserted
documentary → air → Sunday
A number of councillors have already stood down after segments from the investigation aired on Wednesday showed them making graphic threats of extreme violence and expressing racist and misogynistic views.
asserted
them → stand → views
The undercover reporter for ITV also met Pochin, Reform’s MP for Runcorn and Helsby, at a time when she was the party’s only female member of parliament.
asserted
she → meet → parliament
When Pochin was told that a new female press officer was starting work, she was recorded as saying: “Oh thank fuck for that.
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she → tell → that
We so need women press officers …
asserted
We → need → officers
“I go out on all the shows and go: ‘Oh no, it’s lovely, oh they’re all so welcoming.’
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they → go → shows
Shit … they just exclude you if you’re a woman.
asserted
you → exclude → you
It’s really tough being a girl with all of this alpha male shit going on.”
asserted
all → ’ → shit
Pochin did not provide a statement when approached by ITV.
asserted
Pochin → provide → ITV
Reform UK used a statement issued on Thursday to accuse ITV and the company behind the documentary, Hardcash Productions, of using “extreme methods of deception”.
asserted
UK → use → deception
It said: “They have infiltrated our workplace including commissioning an undercover journalist to provide altered identification documents, a false address, and false credentials so that they could be given access to Reform’s headquarters, computer systems, and spy on its employees.
uncertain
they → say → employees
“That same journalist did not limit themselves to recording candid conversations in the workplace.
asserted
journalist → limit → workplace
That journalist also sought to find out sensitive security information, travel arrangements, and financial information outside of the scope of this investigation.”
asserted
journalist → seek → investigation
Reform went on to claim that ITV had failed to address this in correspondence, despite this conduct being drawn to their attention.
uncertain
conduct → go → attention
“This is at a time when Nigel Farage and other members of Reform are being targeted by individuals who wished them harm and caused a security issue which was documented during the course of the undercover investigation,” it added.
asserted
it → target → investigation
We always respect due process of investigations and whilst these are ongoing it would not be appropriate to comment on individual cases.
asserted
it → respect → cases
When approached for comment, Parry referred the Guardian to a statement given to ITV.
asserted
Parry → approach → ITV
In it he said: “I would urge people to go back to the original contexts and tweets to see what was said and why.
asserted
what → say → contexts
They related to reparations and failures by the police and government.
asserted
They → relate → police
They will see I always exercise my right to criticise anyone in power or the public eye whom I judge to be acting against the interests of the British people.”
asserted
I → see → people
The Aporia
