Brexit Party refuses to pull out of Labour-held seats
Nigel Farage has dismissed calls for the Brexit Party to pull out of Labour-held marginal constituencies in order to clear a path for Conservative candidates.
Pressure had mounted on Farage from the Tories, and some Brexit Party supporters, to step aside in some key leave-voting marginal seats.
Read more: In pursuit of power, Farage is gambling with Brexit itself
Farage previously said he would field candidates in 600 seats, before pulling back and announcing the Brexit Party would not contest the 317 seats the Conservatives won in the 2017 General Election.
However, with election registration closing this afternoon it appears Farage will not u-turn a second time.
Today he told the BBC: “If we stood in just 40 constituencies we wouldn’t because of the expenditure rules even be able to fight a campaign.
“But there are very clearly seats in which we are the lead challenger and there are other seats in which they are the lead challenger to Labour.”
Speaking at a campaign event today, he said the party needed to stand to ensure Boris Johnson sticks to his promises over Brexit negotiations.
Farage’s decision to pull out of Conservative-held seats was because of Johnson’s recent promise to not extend the second phase of Brexit negotiations past December 2020.
“We’re going to stand up and fight Labour in every seat in this country – be in no doubt,” he said.
“We say [to the Conservatives] you stand in those seats…and we will fight the rest of the seats [and] get people in parliament, because we need to hold Boris Johnson to those promises.
“That is our job.”
Farage ally, and Leave.EU patron, said Farage was putting Brexit at risk.
Read more: General Election: Farage calls on Conservatives to stand down in some seats for Brexit Party
“Nigel reminds me of a gambler at a casino that’s been winning all night and it’s time to take the chips off the table and step away,” Banks told Reuters.
“What we are offering the geezer, as you might say, is Brexit.”