Nigel Farage’s Reform UK launches official Channel 4 complaint for ‘electoral interference’ over ‘racist slur’
NIGEL Farage’s Reform UK has launched an official complaint against Channel 4 over “electoral interference”.
The broadcaster aired footage showing a party volunteer calling Rishi Sunak an “effing p***” and suggesting migrants be shot by soldiers as they arrive on UK beaches.
Reform volunteer Andrew Parker, who claimed he knew Nigel Farage, was recorded in Clacton by an undercover reporter.
Farage last night claimed Andrew was an “actor” who lists “secret filming” among his skills online.
The Reform UK leader told BBC’s Question Time: “It turns out the man who did this was an actor. He was contacted by the Telegraph this morning and denied he was an actor.
“From the minute he turned up in that office in Clacton and I saw him, he was acting from the very start.”
Now Adam Richardson, the Reform secretary and a barrister, has made a formal complaint to Essex Police on Farage’s behalf, according to The Telegraph.
In his letter he wrote “it is entirely evident that Mr Parker was a plant within the Channel 4 News piece”.
“It is wholly unbelievable that by complete coincidence Channel 4 were performing an undercover investigation and by chance were paired up to go canvassing with a man who was pretending to be someone else, using a false voice and saying almost exclusively racist and bigoted remarks.
“The Channel 4 broadcast has clearly been made to harm Reform UK during an election period, and this cannot be described as anything short of election interference.”
Mr Parker responded “good – I’m glad” after he was told Reform reported Channel 4 to the Electoral Commission.
He would not say whether he had been paid by Channel 4, a claim the broadcaster strongly denies.
“It’ll all come out in the papers,” he said. “What’ll come out is the truth.”
A spokesman for Channel 4 News said: “We strongly stand by our rigorous and duly impartial journalism, which speaks for itself.
“We met Mr Parker for the first time at Reform UK party headquarters, where he was a Reform party canvasser. We did not pay the Reform UK canvasser or anyone else in this report. Mr Parker was not known to Channel 4 News, and was filmed covertly via the undercover operation.”
Watch our daily politics show
Watch The Sun’s DAILY Never Mind the Ballots Election Countdown show on our YouTube channel here.
Every weekday Sun Political Editor Harry Cole brings you the latest news and analysis from the election campaign trail.