Nigel Farage addressed Rupert Lowe’s departure from Reform (Image: Getty)
Nigel Farage has admitted Reform has been through “turbulence” in the last few weeks following a row with Rupert Lowe. Reform’s leader said a report into the ousted MP could come this week.
The Clacton MP insisted the fallout with Mr Lowe had caused “some consternation” but said “that upset is very much at the edges”. At a Mr Farage said: “You might notice that we have been through a little bit of turbulence over the course of the past couple of weeks. We’ve been increasingly concerned about the behaviour of one of our Members of Parliament and when we found out that some serious complaints had gone in, we thought you know what, let’s just suspend the whip and let’s find out what the truth is.
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“And we will wait, first we will get the report from the independent King’s Counsel who’s been appointed, I don’t know exactly when it’s going to be but some anticipation that it might happen during the course of this week, and later on perhaps it’ll take some time we’ll hear from the relevant parliamentary committee too.
“Has it caused some consternation? Of course it has. Any argument that’s seen to happen within the family does. But I can promise you that in terms of our progress and our planning, that upset is very much at the edges.”
A police investigation was launched into claims of “verbal threats” allegedly made by Mr Lowe.
The 67-year-old MP for Great Yarmouth was suspended by Reform UK amid allegations about his conduct, which he denies.
Mr Farage also accused the press of “not really caring” about racist abuse directed at Reform chairman Zia Yusuf.
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He said: “Some of the online abuse and frankly outright, overt racism that has beenshowed against a senior member of this party, had it been shown towards any other member of the ethnic minorities, from the Labour and Conservative parties, every one of you in the journalistic arena in this room would have been in total and absolute uproar.
“It would have been a major national story. But because it’s happening to us no one seems to really care, with the honourable exception of Danny Finkelstein in the Times. I’ve never really agreed with anything in the past Danny’s ever written, but on this he showed himself to be fair.
“Anyway we are big enough and ugly enough to be able to take it and we are cracking on.”
used the press conference in London to unveil 29 councillors who have defected to Reform, including 13 from the .
Mr Farage said: “We need some old lags, we need some people who’ve been in council and know what they’re doing.
“And that’s why I’m delighted to announce that over course of the last two weeks we have been able to sign up [29] people.”
He proceeded to unveil Reform’s new recruits, 15 of whom were previously Conservative councillors.
A further 13 had been sitting as independents, while the final councillor, Reg Kain, was a Liberal Democrat councillor.
Full list of 29 new Reform councillors
Reform UK has released a list of 29 councillors who have defected to the party. According to the party, they are:
- Bill Barrett – Ashford Borough Council, Singleton East, (Previously: Independent)
- Cathy Hunt – Durham County Council, Woodhouse Close (Previously: Independent)
- Christine Palmer – Swale Borough Council, Hartlip, Newington and Upchurch (Previously: Independent)
- Claire Johnson-Wood – Powys County Council, Llanyre with Nantmel (Previously: Independent)
- Dirk Ross – Kent County Council, Ashford South (Previously: Independent)
- Edward Kirk – Wiltshire Council, Trowbridge Adcroft (Previously: Conservative)
- Emma Ellison – Blackpool Council, Norbreck (Previously: Conservative)
- Felix Bloomfield – Oxfordshire County Council – (Previously: Conservative)
- Geoff Morgan – Powys County Council, Ithon Valley (Previously: Independent)
- Graham McAndrew – Hertfordshire County Council, Bishop’s Stortford Rural (Previously: Conservative)
- Heather Asker – Uttlesford District Council, Saffron Walden Castle (Previously: Residents for Uttlesford)
- Iain McIntosh – Powys County Council, Yscir with Honddu Isaf and Llanddew (Previously: Conservative)
- Jan O’Hara – North Northamptonshire Council, Burton and Broughton (Previously: Conservative)
- Joanne Monk – Worcestershire County Council, Arrow Valley East (Previously: Conservative)
- Julian Kirk – King’s Lynn & West Norfolk Borough Council, Walsoken, West Walton and Walpole (Previously: Conservative)
- Kirk Harrison – North Northamptonshire, Irthlingborough (Previously: Conservative)
- Mandy Clare – Chester West and Chester Council, Winsford Dene (Previously: Independent Labour)
- Manzur Hasan – South Holland District Council, Spalding St John’s (Previously: Independent)
- Matthew Salter – Lancashire County Council, Wyre Rural Central (Previously: Conservative)
- Paul Ellison – Wyre Council, Marsh Mill (Previously: Conservative)
- Paul Irwin – Buckinghamshire Council, Stone and Waddesdon (Previously: Conservative)
- Reg Kain – Cheshire East Council, Alsager (Previously: Liberal Democrat)
- Richard Palmer – Swale Borough Council, Hartlip, Newington and Upchurch (Previously: Independent)
- Robert Gibson – South Holland District Council, Spalding St Paul’s (Previously: Independent)
- Stephen Atkinson – Ribble Valley Borough Council, Brockhall and Dinckley (Previously: Conservative)
- Stephen Reed – North East Derbyshire District Council, Killamarsh East (Previously: Conservative)
- Stuart Davies – North Somerset Council, Wick St Lawrence and St Georges (Previously: Independent)
- Thomas Sneath – South Holland District Council, Moulton, Weston and Cowbit (Previously: Independent).