General election live: Reform activist uses racist slurs against Sunak as PM labels Farage ‘Putin appeaser’
Nigel Farage ‘dismayed’ by racist slurs of Reform activist Andrew Parker
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A Reform UK activist used a racist slur to describe prime minister Rishi Sunak while campaigning for the party’s leader Nigel Farage.
Andrew Parker - who referred to Mr Sunak as a “f****** p***” - was heard using the slur while canvassing in Clacton, Essex, where Mr Farage is standing as an MP in the general election.
Undercover footage from a Channel 4 investigation also showed the right-wing activist suggesting army recruits should carry out “target practice” on migrants arriving on small boats across the English Channel.
The prime minister has accused Nigel Farage of “appeasing” Vladimir Putin with his remarks about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
He slammed the remarks as “completely wrong” and said the “appeasements” are “very damaging” to security and foreign relations.
The PM’s campaign continues to be dogged by the betting scandal, with his chief of staff, Liam Booth-Smith, interviewed as a witness by the Gambling Commission.
What to expect on the General Election campaign trail on Friday
Nigel Farage challenged on Reform UK activist using racist slurs
Sunak’s chief of staff helps Gambling Commission investigation – report
From fears to regrets, an emotional Keir Starmer reveals what drives him
Pollster warns only one election question to be answered: ‘How big is the Tory loss?’
Starmer: ‘Not all landlords are evil'
Sir Keir Starmer told BBC Radio 5 Live: “We do need to ensure that there are lower mortgage premiums because many people who are renting are paying more in rent than they would pay in a mortgage.
“And so we know that they’re capable of paying the money they would need to pay in a mortgage but for many they can’t afford to save to get a mortgage in the first place.”
Nicky Campbell then said “this ‘all landlords are evil’ thing...”, to which Sir Keir replied: “No, it’s not all landlords are evil... There’s nothing against your property and being a landlord and nothing wrong with setting a good rent that gives you a good income.
“We can’t simply leave out of account what is happening nowadays where the rents are just going up because there are more people who need to rent than there are places to rent and the prices are just going through the roof.”
Starmer vows to adopt a ‘preventative’ NHS model
Sir Keir Starmer is asked about how he would fix the NHS “without throwing endless money at it”.
He said he would start with tackling waiting lists and bring 40,000 extra appointments a week.
The Labour leader added: “We’ve got a programme of change and reform because we’re very proud of the fact that we set up the NHS 76 or year ago. But we can’t forever be looking backwards at what past Labour governments did, we’ve got to start looking forward.
“We have to change the model of the NHS to a preventative model.”
Watch: Nigel Farage challenged on Reform UK activist using racist slurs
Nigel Farage challenged on Reform UK activist using racist slurs
Nigel Farage has responded to a Channel 4 News undercover investigation within the Reform UK campaign that exposed examples of racist language. An undercover reporter recorded one canvasser calling for migrants crossing the English Channel to be used as “target practice” and another Reform UK activist using a racial slur to describe Rishi Sunak. In a separate video shared by Channel 4 News after the footage was shared, Mr Farage was asked if he would “apologise” to the prime minister. “It was horrible,” he responded. When pressed again, he added: “How much further can I go? Of course it is an apology, it was horrible.”
‘Is Nigel Farage a racist?'
Radio 5 Live’s Nicky Campbell has asked the Labour leader a straight question: “Is Nigel Farage a racist?”
Sir Keir Starmer denied the claims about the Reform leader but condemned the comments made by one of his campaigners.
He responded: “I wouldn’t call him names. I don’t think he has the answers to the challenges that we face. I’ve seen some of the comments that have come up overnight from some of his supporters, they’re clearly racist.”
“I don’t tend to campaign by going around calling people names. I do think
The radio host then challenges Sir Keir, saying: “You said Sunak was ‘out of touch’ so you do call people names.”
He then claims that it is “not in my nature” to slam people during election campaign.
Starmer not renewing lump-sum tax option for pensioners
Sir Keir Starmer is quizzed on whether he would tax pensioners to avoid taxing working people.
Paul in Derby, a voter who wanted to take a 25 per cent lump sum, tax-free, from his pension asks the Labour leader if pensioners can expect more taxes.
Asked whether he would remove lump-sum tax, he said: “It runs out in a number of years, and we are not going to renew it. We have to ensure that everything that we commit to is fully costed and fully funded.”
Starmer insists he is not abolishing private schools
Sir Keir Starmer has said he has “nothing against” private schools and he is not trying to “abolish private schools”.
Asked whether the country would be a “better society” without private schools, he told BBC Radio 5 Live: “No, and I’ve got nothing against private schools. I want to take our country forward to a point where it does not matter whether you’ve gone to state school or private school.”
The Labour leader added: “Do we want to abolish private schools, no, do I want to make sure that where you go to school doesn’t matter.”
Starmer quizzed about VAT on private schools
A voter told the Labour leader her son was not offered a secondary school place and that she had to remortgage her house to send him to a private one.
Sir Keir Starmer is then asked what would he do to find school places for children priced out of private education.
He responded: “We do have a plan in relation to VAT and private schools. We have looked at the likely impact of that on parents in the same position as you, who have worked hard, saved hard, to make sure they’ve got the money to put their children into private school because they’ve got aspiration for their children.
“But every parent has aspiration for their children. At the moment we don’t have enough specialist teachers in our state schools.”
Sir Keir added: “The difficult position she’s been put in is obviously one of great concern... At the end of the day we’ve got to make a difficult decision, which is do we allow the situation to go on with our state secondary schools? That is something that is going to stay with a child for a very long time.”
Starmer refuses to comment on concerns over Biden’s presidential debate
Sir Keir Starmer has refused to voice out concerns about Joe Biden after the US president’s performance during the election debate against Donald Trump.
Dodging the question, he said: “Well, look, I don’t think me commentating on the American election is helpful. We’ve got our own election going on here. And in the end it’s not for me, it’s for the American people to decide and they will decide and we’ll deal with whoever they elect in as their president.”
It is then put to him that shadow foreign secretary David Lammy called Trump a “woman-hating neo-Nazi sympathising sociopath” and a “profound threat to the international order” in 2019.
The Labour leader said: “Those aren’t words that I’ve ever used. I’ve dealt with all sorts of leaders when I was chief prosecutor across the world. I know the job of the person who leads our country is to deal with the leaders of other countries, that are elected in by their people. You don’t always get to choose the leaders of other countries.”
Join today's Q&A with Plaid Cymru candidate Ian Johnson
The Independent is giving readers the chance to chat directly with candidates from some of the major political parties in a special general election series of Ask Me Anything events.
The first Q&A today starts at 12pm and is with Plaid Cymru candidate Ian Johnson.
If you have a question about Plaid Cymru’s manifesto, pledges or policies submit it now.
Starmer takes voters’ calls on Radio5 Live
After sitting on the BBC Breakfast sofa, Sir Keir Starmer is now taking questions from voters’ calls.
The Labour leader is now speaking on Radio 5 Live.
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