Both Clare Fox have Richard Tice have spent the last 20 mins attacking the Tories. Doesn’t feel like a party about to try and form an alliance... 
.@Fox_Claire giving a pretty damning Lexiter account of the EU. If Brexit Party is going to contest the election full throttle, expect we’ll see a lot of her during the campaign.
.@Fox_Claire: “The Brexit Party, the insurgent Party is the party to watch in this election.”
He’s here.
I’ve seen Farage give dozens of speeches this year. He never usually speaks from notes. He is today. He’s being entirely deliberate.
Farage: “this is a Lab Party which represents Islington, not Islwyn. Hampstead not Huddersfield. Dalston not Doncaster.”
This is the problem. He’s right there’s electoral drift for Lab in these places. But all three of those seats have huge Lab majorities. They won’t fall.
This is the problem. He’s right there’s electoral drift for Lab in these places. But all three of those seats have huge Lab majorities. They won’t fall.
Farage says he’ll be campaigning in Workington next Wednesday.
Farage: “Boris tells us it’s a great new deal. It’s not. It’s another new treaty. It’s just not Brexit.”
Farage: “Boris’ deal will not get Brexit done. It will lead to a campaign where we have no voice, no veto. It’ll lead to a campaign for us to rejoin. A campaign I have no doubt would succeed.”
Farage’s conversion to remainer critiques of Brexit is interesting...
Farage’s conversion to remainer critiques of Brexit is interesting...
Farage: “a general election is the chance to push the reset button...so I’ll say this to Boris Johnson- drop the deal. Drop the deal because it’s not Brexit.”
Farage says he’ll compromise over no deal. Says if he’s “willing to go down the route of a genuine FTA and that he will not sign up to continued political linkage. if Boris were to go along with that, in the interests of building a Leave alliance I’d be willing to back that”
Farage seems to be saying Johnson has to drop the Withdrawal Agreement entirely and just have an FTA...but he can’t do that...
“I very much hope that this works. But if it doesn’t then it’ll only be the Brexit Party which really will be standing for Brexit.”
Says if Johnson doesn’t accept his offer then the Brexit Party will be standing in every seat in Great Britain.
There is no way Johnson can accept the ultimatum of dropping the Withdrawal Agreement which is Farage’s ask. Farage must know this so I assume it’s an offer designed to be rejected. So we must assume the Brexit Party will contest virtually every seat. No “leave alliance”
This means Farage will spend every day slamming Johnson telling Leave voters that his deal is not Brexit. It’s not an existential problem. But in an election with tight margins it could be decisive.
Farage gives Johnson until the close of nominations on November 14th.
Farage says there are some in Downing St who think an alliance with Brexit Party is necessary. Some who think it’s “the last thing they’d want to do”, some who “would almost rather lose” than do a deal with him.
Farage: “If Boris thinks he can survive six weeks on the basis of what’s in his Brexit treaty, then he’s got another thing coming.”
Farage says he’ll announce where he’s going to stand in the next few days but right now it’s “a distraction” from the alliance he’s trying to build.
Farage: “there’s two weeks to construct a Leave alliance and it needs to be done.”
He’s playing a vintage Brexit blame game. Offering a compromise which he must know can never be reached.
He’s playing a vintage Brexit blame game. Offering a compromise which he must know can never be reached.
Interesting thing is, does Farage’s offer start to introduce splits into the Tory Party? ERG MPs start to say, yes, perhaps we should ditch the a Withdrawal Agreement? If we get a majority we can do it? Tory unity quite brittle.
