David Lammy has accused Nigel Farage of being an apologist for Vladimir Putin, claiming the Russian president wants the Reform UK leader to succeed in order to divide Europe. The deputy prime minister made the remarks during a speech to European socialists in Amsterdam on Saturday, as he launched a fresh attack on the populist right.
Lammy’s comments come after Nathan Gill, a former Reform UK leader in Wales and close ally of Farage, was found guilty of taking money from the Kremlin. “Nigel Farage says he’s stunned by the fact his former party leader in Wales took Russian bribes. But we’re not stunned,” Lammy said. “Because the Kremlin has a proven track record of supporting the networks that want European unity to fail.”
The foreign secretary, who has been freed from his brief, also warned that the populist right is organising as an international network, linking Farage to figures such as Steve Bannon in the US, Marine Le Pen in France, and UK far‑right leader Tommy Robinson. He argued that Labour and its centre‑left allies are “winning” in the global struggle against populism, despite a recent poll putting the party in third place on 15 per cent, behind Reform UK on 32 per cent and the Tories on 17 per cent.
Lammy acknowledged that voters are feeling uncertainty and looking for change, but insisted that the situation is “fraught with peril” yet “full of possibility”. He pointed to Labour’s election victory last July, as well as recent wins for centre‑left parties in Canada, Australia, and Norway, as evidence that “we are winning worldwide”.
In a rallying cry, Lammy declared that Farage and the populist right “shall not pass” in future elections, adding: “When Nigel Farage attacks judges and mobilises grievances against the courts, this is his playbook. This is the price he would have us pay. That’s why in our elections, they shall not pass. Why in your elections, they shall not pass. Across Europe, they shall not pass.”
