Nigel Farage vows to clean up Reform UK's act: Newly elected MP announces he is taking legal action against firm tasked with vetting party's candidates after racism and homophobia scandals
Nigel Farage has said he is 'launching criminal legal action' against Colin Bloom of Vetting.Com as he vowed to 'professionalise' Reform UK following a slew of racism and homophobia scandals during the party's campaign.
The leader of Reform UK made the comments during a fiery Westminster conference that was interrupted seven times by hecklers who had to be forcibly removed.
Last week Mr Farage's campaign was rocked by a Channel 4 News's programme titled Undercover Inside Reform's campaign, which saw a canvasser named Andrew Parker filmed using a racial slur to describe then Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Reform UK then made an official complaint against Channel 4 over 'electoral interference' after claiming the broadcaster used an actor as a 'plant' during an undercover sting.
Adam Richardson, the Reform secretary, said in a letter to the Electoral Commission that it was 'entirely evident' that Parker who was filmed making a string of sickening racist remarks was 'a plant within the Channel 4 News piece'.
Facing a question about the racism row engulfing the party, its leader again blamed the firm it contracted to vet candidates.
He also said: 'I made it clear that Ukip would be a non-racist, non-sectarian party, and in the end it was.
Nigel Farage has said he is 'launching criminal legal action' against Colin Bloom of Vetting.Com
Andrew Parker, who works as an actor, was filmed calling the Prime Minister 'a f***ing p***' as he canvassed in Clacton-on-Sea
The leader of Reform made the comments during a fiery Westminster conference
'I will jolly well make sure, starting today, that we do not want people with desperately unpleasant views. We will not tolerate people with these views. They will be gone.
'And we'll have the funding after this, we'll have the support coming in to be able to absolutely professionalise the party. This will never happen again.'
He said that vetting candidates is 'easy' and that most racism in British politics is in the Labour Party.
Asked how he would vet Reform candidates properly going forward, including for racism, he said: 'Very easy. You go back through their social media records, you obviously do police checks and things like that, no, it's not difficult to do it and the message has to be clear and simple.
'We don't want anyone like that involved with us. Indeed I mean the racism problem in the Labour Party was enormous, but to Keir Starmer's credit actually he did quite a lot by getting rid of Jeremy Corbyn, who ironically has been re-elected.
'There's an awful lot we can do. There is plenty of racism in British politics, it's mostly in the Labour Party.'
Asked whether he would give up his broadcasting career and still planned to go and support Donald Trump in his US presidential election campaign, Mr Farage said: 'I haven't got a clue. I haven't thought any of this through yet.
'We've been so busy focused on running to the line of July the 4th that we have a lot to think about. But you known what you say I'm a very busy man - you want to get a job done ask a busy man to do it, they somehow always find the time.'
A spokesperson for Vetting.com told MailOnline: 'Some months ago we approached all the major UK political parties offering our automated background screening services. We were delighted to be asked to help Reform.
'Everyone’s working assumption was that the election would be in the Autumn, giving us the Summer to complete this work.
'Given the explicit need for candidate consent, as well as our systems needing basic personal data like dates of birth, our automated software was not able process Reform’s candidates with the data that was provided when it was provided.
;We do not intend to litigate this in public, and we send Reform our best wishes as they shake up the UK political landscape.
'Mr Bloom has not had anything to do with the UK Conservative Party since 2022 and remains politically neutral.'
Mr Farage had arrived at the event to the sound of dance music and a standing ovation from supporters, with the Reform UK logo and 'Britain Needs Reform' on the wall.
But then a heckler started interrupting amid calls from the audience for them to be removed. The man was then escorted out before more shouting was heard as Mr Farage, who was elected as the MP for Clacton overnight, stood behind a podium.
The further hecklers were also then removed one by one as the press conference descended into chaos and Mr Farage repeatedly shouted 'boring' in response.
Nigel Farage is heckled during at a Reform UK press conference in London this afternoon
A heckler interrupts Reform party leader Nigel Farage as he tries to speak in London today
Nigel Farage reacts as a protester interrupts his press conference in London this afternoon
A heckler is escorted out as Reform party leader Nigel Farage tries to speak in London today
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage with Richard Tice at the press conference in London today
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage arrives at the press conference in London today
Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage speaks to the media in London this afternoon
Mr Farage also accused one of the hecklers who interrupted him of being 'steaming' and shouted 'boring!' nine times as a second heckler started speaking.
Both members of the audience were escorted out of the venue. As one man started shouting at him, he responded: 'Are you downwind a couple already?
'You've had a bigger lunch than I have. Cor, he's absolutely steaming isn't he? That's all right, there's still plenty of beer left in the pub, mate.'
As a fourth heckler interrupted him, the Reform UK leader said: 'You'll do yourself a nasty mate. You'll have a stroke if you carry on like this.'
Mr Farage, facing further heckling from a fifth person, joked: 'This is good preparation for the House of Commons I suppose, isn't it? It's going to be very lively in there.'
As a woman shouted, Mr Farage added: 'Oh do buck up really, please love, I'm so sorry.' He shouted 'bye darling' as she was removed.
Once the press conference could begin properly, Mr Farage also outlined his desire to make changes to the party
Mr Farage added: 'Any more for any more?' After a pause, a man shouted: 'Actually yes.' Mr Farage added: 'We haven't organised this very well, have we?'
Once the press conference could begin properly, Mr Farage also outlined his desire to make changes to the party.
He said: 'Above all what we're going to do from today is we're going to professionalise the party, we're going to democratise the party and those few bad apples that have crept in will be gone, will be long gone, and we will never have any of their type back in our organisation. You have a 100 per cent promise on that.'
Mr Farage then said Reform UK's focus will be on going 'after Labour votes'.
He added: 'Old Labour was very, very patriotic. It believed in the country. It believed in its people. New Labour far less so.
During the conference, multiple hecklers were removed from the room
'And the journey that Lee Anderson has been on is a journey that at least a couple of million people have been on, and it'll be many, many more by the time we're finished, because no doubt, our priority now is to go after Labour votes. That is what we're going to be doing.
Introducing Reform's Ashfield MP Lee Anderson, Mr Farage said: 'Lee Anderson took a brave decision.
'He decided to join Reform UK. He was much mocked and derided by colleagues who had similar political opinions to him but didn't have the guts to do it. They've all lost their seats overnight.'
Mr Anderson then claimed he would be looking at Sir Keir Starmer's Government in the Commons and thinking 'what has our country come to'.
The Reform UK MP said the UK's Prime Minister and his 'motley crew absolutely scares me to death, I'm going to be sat on the green benches next week looking at them and thinking what has our country come to'.
An exasperated Nigel Farage began his speech by calling the demonstrators 'boring'
In the early hours of today, Mr Farage was declared MP for Clacton shortly after Mr Anderson became the party's first MP of the night with victory in Ashfield.
Reform's party chairman Richard Tice won Boston and Skegness, while former Southampton FC chairman Rupert Lowe won Great Yarmouth – both from the Tories.
Some 4.1million people voted for Reform, giving it a 14 per cent share - with its candidates coming second in 89 seats, many in Labour-won areas of northern England and Wales.
Earlier, Mr Farage said Reform was 'coming for Labour', while Mr Tice described Reform as filling a 'vacuum' in right-wing politics in Britain.
Meanwhile Mr Tice blasted the 'injustice' of the first-past-the-post electoral system, after the Liberal Democrats gained 71 seats with 3.5million votes. This meant the Lib Dems had 67 more seats than Reform despite having about 500,000 fewer votes.
