Nigel Farage has been left humiliated after his plan to trigger a by-election in his own seat spectacularly backfired. The Reform UK leader announced he would quit as MP for Clacton, claiming it would be a 'people versus the establishment' contest. However, within hours, Labour, the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, Greens, and the hard-right Restore party all declared they would boycott the vote.
A Labour spokesman called the move 'pathetic' and said the party would not 'indulge' what they described as a 'circus'. Keir Starmer said: 'This is a desperate stunt from Nigel Farage and it's obvious why he's doing it - he is up to his neck in sleaze.' Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said her party would not stand a candidate in the 'fake' by-election, while Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey urged all parties to 'refuse to give oxygen to Farage’s vanity project'.
The by-election was triggered amid a probe by the parliamentary commissioner for standards into Farage's failure to declare a £5 million gift from Thai-based crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne before his election. Farage also faces a separate investigation over alleged undeclared benefits from convicted criminal George Cottrell. By resigning, Farage may pause the standards probe, but it could resume if he wins the seat back.
Farage offered to pay the estimated £200,000 cost of the by-election, but a Labour source dismissed the offer, saying: 'He cannot just buy his way out of the mess he’s got himself into.' The only confirmed candidate so far is comedian Count Binface, raising the prospect of a one-sided contest.
