Nigel Farage holding a copy of the Daily Express in 2016 (Image: Getty)
Nigel Farage took a brutal swipe at Boris Johnson and Kemi Badenoch on the fifth anniversary of , accusing them of not truly believing in Britain’s historic decision to leave the EU.
The Reform UK leader said the country needs a government that believes in quitting the bloc so its full potential can truly be unleashed.
And he accused his political rivals of failing to make the most of Britain’s freedoms.
The UK officially left the EU at 11pm – midnight in Brussels – on January 31 2020, after three-and-a-half years of political wrangling that followed the 2016 referendum.
told the Daily Express: “We know Labour were opposed, Starmer wanted a second referendum, Liberal Democrats the same,” he said.
“But I frankly look now at , Kemi Badenoch, all of these people, I don’t think they ever really believed in it.
“I think they used it as a vehicle to win a General Election, which I helped them do. They never really believed in it.
“They always kind of saw it I think a bit more as damage limitation rather than an opportunity.”
Richard Tice: ‘Happy Brexit Day’
Reform UK Deputy Leader shares a video of a “small party for 100,000 friends” in Parliament Square.
It captures the delight as Britain finally left the .
ud83cuddecud83cudde7HAPPY DAY ud83cuddecud83cudde75 years ago today u2066u2069 and I organised a small party for 100,000 friends in Parliament SqQuite a night had by all ud83dude0eud83dudca5
u2014 MP ud83cuddecud83cudde7 (@TiceRichard)
Priti Patel: ‘We honoured the democratic will of the British people’
The have celebrated the anniversary, with shadow foreign secretary Dame Priti Patel saying it marked five years since her party “honoured the democratic will of the British people and got done”.
She said: “Since then, our country has reaped the benefits – securing new trade deals with dynamic, fast-growing markets across the world and reclaiming sovereignty from Brussels.”
Dame Priti went on to warn that Labour, “driven by socialist ideology and blind to the will of the people”, was “determined to dismantle and drag us back into the EU’s grasp” and vowed not to “allow this betrayal to happen”.
Since coming to power, Labour has sought a “reset” in relations with the EU, but has consistently ruled out a return to either the customs union or the single market.
Brits celebrate leaving the EU
The historic decision to leave the triggered huge celebrations accross the country.
Thousands gathered outside Parliament to mark the historic occasion, while others held parties and danced through the night.
(Image: Getty)
(Image: Getty)
‘Our UK town voted for Brexit – here’s what we really think five years on’
The Express’s Senior Political Correspondent, Katie Harris, went to Clacton-on-Sea in Essex to speak to the town’s residents about the historic vote five years on.
‘s constituency recorded one of the highest leave votes in the country with almost 70% opting to split from Brussels.
John Button, 95, expressed fears that the UK is being dragged back into the EU’s orbit.
said: “There seems to be a move to bring us back in by stealth which I’m against. I’m very strongly for .”
He said he would vote for again and that the biggest win was the “sense of pride” in the country.
John Ramsey, 68, Holland-on-Sea, voted to leave but said “nothing seems to have changed” and that immigration “seems to have got worse”.
On if he would vote the same way again, he added: “Yes because in the end I think we’re better on our own.”
The 68-year-old added that he had “a lot” of concerns about Prime Minister Sir , saying: “He’s terrible, he’ll just want to give the country away.”
For more from Clacton-on-Sea, click
Farage: ‘We now need people in charge to deliver the Brexit we voted for’
has vowed to deliver the 17.9million people voted for if he becomes Prime Minister.
The Reform UK leader said the country needs a government that believes in being outside the EU so its full potential can truly be unleashed.
You can watch the full message to Daily Express readers