Nigel Farage v Count Binface
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
This is The Guardian.
Today, Nigel Farage versus Count Binface.
One minute afternoon on Tuesday, Nigel Farage posted a cryptic message on social media.
Saying simply, I will make a statement on my future in public life at 2pm.
Just after 2pm, he appeared, slightly harassed, on Reform's YouTube channel.
Good afternoon, everybody.
Two years ago, after several years... Flanked by two Union Jacks, the towers of Westminster and the London Eye in the background, he spent the first 14 minutes complaining.
So, yes, you can ask, am I angry? Well, I've never been angrier in my life.
Then, finally, came the big announcement.
I've thought about it hard and I've decided today, today I will resign as a Member of Parliament for Clacton-on-Sea, thereby forcing a by-election.
It was, he said, a people versus the establishment by-election. Only the establishment isn't playing.
We're not standing a candidate in the fake by-election, which Nigel Farage... You know, I think that's certainly going to be one of the options on the table because, you know, why should we all dance to Farage's tune? The other party have decided as a whole, all of us, that we won't be standing a candidate in the by-election. You won't be? We won't be standing a candidate.
The other party's a chicken, suggested one of his closest lieutenants on GB News.
Let's start with your reaction. You can hear the chickens and the cowards clucking away, honestly. I mean, these people.
But why did Farage really step down? And could it backfire? From The Guardian, I'm Helen Pidd. Today in Focus, Farage's latest gamble.
Ben Quinn, welcome back to Today in Focus. I say welcome because actually this is the second time we've talked this week, isn't it?
It is.
What happened when Nigel Farage announced his resignation and why did he trigger a Clacton by-election?
We're having a second go because things are moving so swiftly this week.
Yeah. And so you are a political correspondent at The Guardian. And we had a lovely plan, didn't we, that this week we were going to put out an episode looking at whether Reform UK, Farage's party, had peaked. And that episode will sadly remain on the cutting room floor now because it's just been overtaken so comprehensively by events. And can we just start by you telling me, you have followed Farage around for years. Were you surprised at the stunt he pulled on Tuesday?
Yes and no. In some ways it was unexpected. You just don't expect an MP to step aside like this. And we're talking about someone who's spent their entire career trying to get elected to Parliament. But at the same time, it was also classic Farage, sort of a rabbit out of the hat and to try and distract, distort and also take the initiative again.
We'll talk in a bit about the tactics behind his resignation. But can we just start by recapping the various scandals that have been swirling around Farage in recent months? And the main two involve two very rich men. Can you tell me about them?
So the pressure Naisal Faraj has been under really relates to a £5 million payment which was made to him, a gift which was given to him and which the Guardian revealed, which he did not declare. And that came from Christopher Harbourn, who's a Thai-based crypto billionaire and a donor to reform.
Quite a bit of breaking news to bring you. It concerns the leader of Reform UK. I understand that Nigel Farage is now facing an investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, Daniel Greenberg. He was asked to investigate a couple of weeks ago after news about the gift, as Reform UK have termed it, from Christopher Harbourn...
Secondly, the other individual is someone who has been at Nigel Farage's side for many, many years, George Cottrell, a.k.a. Post George, a young publicly school educated minor aristocrat who, you know, variously has been described as Nigel Farage's bag man and, you know, his advisor in so many matters.
Yeah. And George Cottrell is a very interesting character for a number of reasons. He has said that he calls Farage daddy. They're so close. And the most important thing to know about George Cottrell is that he's a convicted criminal, isn't he?
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–2:25
2
What happened when Nigel Farage announced his resignation and why did he trigger a Clacton by-election?
2:25–16:42
3
Which scandals involving donors and associates are putting Farage under parliamentary investigation?
16:42–20:43
4
Who is George Cottrell and what are the allegations about his relationship with Farage?
20:43–26:57