Nigel Farage has broken his silence after a public spat with MP Rupert Lowe threatened to see Reform UK descend into civil war. Farage became embroiled in a public spat with his MP for Great Yarmouth yesterday after Mr Lowe was informed that he would be having the whip removed following two allegations made by female staff members. The allegations came to light just days after Lowe publicly told the Daily Mail that Mr Farage could “only deliver if he surrounds himself with the right people”. Mr Lowe has vehemently denied these allegations.
Mr Lowe has accused people within the party of betraying him and letting down millions of people across the country. Mr Farage warned that the row threatens the party’s hopes of electoral success, acknowledging that “the public does not like political parties that engage in constant infighting”.
Writing in the Telegraph, Mr Farage said: “Now, thanks to one of our MPs, Rupert Lowe, unloading a barrage of criticisms against our operations and its main actors, that sense of unity has been dented.
“The truth is that Mr Lowe has made some excellent interventions over the past eight months and helped to stimulate public debate on a range of pressing issues facing the country.
“What many people may not have realised, however, is that in that time he has also managed to fall out with all his parliamentary colleagues in one way or another. We did our best to keep a lid on things but, in the end, containment strategies invariably fail.”
Mr Farage warned infighting would damage Reform’s hopes of election success.
He wrote: “If the last general election taught us anything, it is that the public does not like political parties that engage in constant infighting,” he wrote. “The never-ending civil war that came to define the last Conservative government resulted in the loveless, though large, Labour majority that Britain is saddled with today.
“I’m acutely aware of this, which is why Reform UK has devoted so much time and effort since July to building a unified national party machine.”
Mr Farage went onto accuse the former Southampton FC Chairman of pushing the shoulder of transport minister Mike Kane following a heated debate in parliament which required the Serjeant at Arms to intervene.
It has been a turbulent few days for the party, with Mr Lowe appearing to criticise the Reform leader on Thursday only for allegations of misconduct to come to light the following day.
Mr Lowe categorically denies all allegations made against him and says that he believes that “the truth will out.”
Mr Farage defended the stance of the party, claiming that it was imperative that the party conducts as “it is inconceivable that we could simply ignore such allegations.”
He added: “Can anybody imagine what sort of a storm Reform UK would be facing now if it transpired that this unfortunate situation had been dealt with by trying to play it down or, worse, sweep it under the carpet?
“I am certain that to have done nothing would have been considerably worse for everybody concerned: the two women who claim they are the victims of workplace bullying; Mr Lowe; Mr Yusuf in his capacity as party chairman; and the reputation of Reform UK. Trust is the cornerstone of politics, after all.”
Mr Lowe took to X to appeal to Mr Farage for a conversation as he dismissed the timing of the allegations.
He said: “I have enormous respect for you, but you know that this is an entirely false and poisonous narrative. Why remove the whip before any investigation has even started? Don’t you believe that we are all innocent until proven guilty? Why launch this malicious attack the day after my reasonable concerns were made public?
“The timing is suspect, to say the least.
“To suggest that my questions came after this vindictive process began is a falsehood. I gave the interview to the Daily Mail on the 25th of February in Westminster. I first received word of the Reform proceedings against me on the 28th of February. On a Friday afternoon from Lee Anderson, with no prior warning. What professionalism. Honestly, the process has been handled so appallingly. I don’t even know if I remain in the party or not. Amateur is generous.”
Reform UK’s Chief Whip Lee Anderson also released a statement in which he claimed that Mr Lowe had been unwilling to cooperate since the investigation commenced.
He said: “There is far too much at stake and by not taking decisive action we would risk losing everything we have built up.
“I bare no malice towards Rupert and to remove the whip was a deeply painful thing to do, but delivering for our country must come first and no man is bigger than our party.”
