'Truly Sickening': Reform UK Councillors and Candidates Accused Of 'Extreme Racism'
Election signs for Reform UK.Reform UK has been plunged into a fresh race row after some of the party’s councillors and candidates were recorded expressing “extreme” racist views.An undercover investigation by ITV Exposure filmed one Reform politician describing Asian families as “parasites” and saying the government should “stick them on planes and fuck them off to Pakistan”.Another candidate claimed King Charles was “a fucking Muslim” and should have his head cut off.Reform said it had launched an investigation and that some of those caught on camera had already been suspended by the party.During the local elections earlier this year, Alan Feeney, a Reform councillor in Solihull, was recorded saying the area has been “infested” with Asian families, and called them “absolute parasites”.He said Muslims are “in our judiciary, they’re in our schools, they’re in our healthcare, they’re everywhere, and they are not working on our side, they’re against us”.Councillor Feenet also said he believed that “no more than 1% of the British population can be non-white”.“When a house comes up for sale, white people need to be in there,” he said. “You almost need to out-Muslim the Muslims.“You’d need a proper nuclear option, like literally drag them out their homes, stick them on planes and fuck them off to Pakistan.”Jamie Campbell and Chris Whelan, two other Reform candidates in Solihull, were recorded discussing with Feeney speculation that a mosque could be built in the area.Campbell said: “There’s got to be a way of stopping that, like go and buy some pork chops. We’ll bury it in the ground.”“Unfortunately this is a pig cemetery mate,” said Councillor Feeney, who has now ““mutually agreed” to resign from Reform, citing “personal reasons”.Councillor Whelan has also resigned from the party for personal and health reasons.The ITV undercover team also joined Reform canvassers during the Makerfield by-election in the summer.Dean Miller, a Reform councillor in Bromley, South London, was recorded saying: “We’ve been ethnically cleansed out of London.”“Because you never used to get any blacks over in Bromley, and now Bromley [has] massive Nigerian communities there,” he said.In another conversation about local children committing vandalism, Councillor Miller’s said: “Like all the ethnic fucking kids, they’re not white, they’re all fucking black, and they’re like fucking animals.“It’s horrible to say it. I’m not racist.”Councillor Miller also claimed that King Charles is “a fucking Muslim”.“I think that’s fucking traitorous,” he said. “Cut the c***’s head off, sorry.”Labour chair Bridget Phillipson said: “The extreme racism and appalling behaviour exposed by this investigation is truly sickening.“Nigel Farage can’t shrug these latest revelations off as being a few bad apples. Every Reform councillor, council candidate or party member found to have made such despicable comments must be thrown out of Reform UK immediately.“Nigel Farage needs to explain why this keeps happening in his party and why he is failing to deal with blatant racism among those who stand for public office with his backing.“It’s clear that Farage and his party are determined to poison our politics and threaten the shared British values Labour will always proudly defend.“As every day passes, the evidence piles up yet higher as to why Nigel Farage and Reform are completely unfit for office.”Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said: “This is chilling. I feel for anyone watching this tonight who is frightened to see such racism and hatred festering in their community.“It’s the very worst of what we’re seeing in Trump’s America. We can’t let it become Farage’s Britain.”Nick Lowles, chief executive of anti-racism campaigners HOPE not hate, said: “In 2024, Nigel Farage said bigots and extremists were not welcome in Reform UK. He promised to root out supposed bad apples. Yet time and time again, we have seen him fail.“This latest report from ITV reveals the extreme misogyny and racism within the rank and file of the Reform Party - including sitting councillors.”In a statement, Reform said: “Where members, activists and councillors have clearly behaved inappropriately, investigations have commenced.“In some cases, there have been suspensions and due process must be followed.“Reform UK has improved and prioritised its vetting procedures, but from time to time, a handful of individuals who do not share our values will initially make it through vetting.“This is the same for all organisations. However good the vetting, one cannot vet a future comment especially in circumstances where an individual is entrapped in a discussion with an undercover reporter. There is no room for racism in Reform UK.”Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.Related...Zia Yusuf Accused Of Racism Over Attack On Somali-Born Labour Council LeaderReform Candidates Accused Of Pushing 'Vile Racism, Misogyny And Conspiracy Theories' Online'Straight-Up Racism': Minister Slams Zia Yusuf Over Attack On Labour Council Leader
2 hours ago
