This is a quote from Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, reflecting on the party's performance in local elections. He expresses surprise and satisfaction with the results, stating that they have exceeded his expectations, particularly in areas like County Durham. He attributes the success to the party's growth, improved personnel, and professional operations, and interprets it as a sign that people are ready for change.
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00:00Race in Lincolnshire, Durham, Lincolnshire, Lancashire, Staffordshire, Derbyshire,
00:06some of the councils you've won. Is it beyond what you thought you could do today?
00:11Way beyond. I knew we'd do well today. I mean, I've seen the party grow.
00:15I've seen the calibre of people improve. We've professionalised the way we operate.
00:19Everything from our literature to data gathering.
00:22But frankly, what we're achieving in terms of council seat numbers,
00:24what has happened here in County Durham, beyond my wildest dreams.
00:28Just goes to show people are ready for real change.
00:31It's interesting as well, when you look at the national equivalent vote,
00:34so how at the end of the day, when all the votes are counted,
00:38how you might go in terms of vote share,
00:41it could be that reform become the biggest party in terms of these elections,
00:45in terms of vote share. What do you make of that?
00:50I think people just look at Westminster and look at failure.
00:54You know, the Conservatives swept on a massive wave,
00:56including seats up here in the so-called Red Wall that they've won.
00:59A wave of optimism.
01:01They broke virtually every major promise they made to the British people.
01:04Labour won on, frankly, an anti-Tory vote.
01:07The Prime Minister promised change.
01:09Well, no-one's seeing positive change economically or socially.
01:13And people are actually getting poorer,
01:15despite the claims of the government.
01:16So people want something different.
01:18Back in Westminster, when you were saying,
01:20I will be the next Prime Minister.
01:21A lot of people thought that was ludicrous.
01:24You were being audacious and it wasn't believable.
01:27What do you say to them now?
01:29They're not laughing now, are they?
01:31They see, this is reform quake.
01:33That's what's going on across the country today.
01:36These are the most astonishing set of local election results
01:39in the history of our country.
01:40You're building a coalition here.
01:42You're taking votes from Labour
01:44in some of those Red Wall seats that Boris Johnson did well in.
01:48And you're also, obviously,
01:50hitting the Conservatives really hard.
01:54But to maintain that,
01:56do you need to change the style in which you lead?
01:59And what I mean by that is you're a divisive politician.
02:02Well, good. Good.
02:04But to keep a coalition together,
02:06do you have to change anything up?
02:08I'm sorry, I'm not Mr Bland.
02:10You know, I am who I am.
02:12Take me or leave me.
02:13I'm a straight speaker.
02:15I say what I believe.
02:16And if you like it, that's fantastic.
02:18And if you don't, I don't care.
02:20In a fast-past-the-closed system, though,
02:22people tend to win on centre ground
02:24because they've got to build a massive coalition of voters.
02:26We are.
02:27Yeah, but just up there,
02:28you were talking about people don't work from home,
02:30you don't like diversity on the councils.
02:32A lot of people won't like that.
02:34What you're missing is that is the centre ground
02:38of public opinion.
02:39There's a silent majority that believes
02:41in the things that we believe in.
02:44Westminster, and dare I say it, much of the media,
02:46is out of touch with where this country is moving.
02:49And I think that's what today's election results prove.
02:51Nobody in Westminster listens from this in the short term.
02:55But I tell you what, this is happening.
02:57It's not a one-off.
02:58It's real.
02:58So, sort of divisive politics or...
03:02Are you going to carry on doing that?
03:05Do you know, you know, I'm a bit older than you.
03:07I know, you're not all that much.
03:09Michael Thurt versus Margaret Thatcher in the 83 election,
03:13you could say, was divisive politics.
03:15They both had completely different world views.
03:18And there wasn't much love lost between one and the other.
03:22But provided it's civil, provided it's within reasonable rules,
03:25I think politics is about having a choice of different visions
03:29that some love and some hate.
03:31One other question.
03:32I noticed on stage there, you said that the councils that reform run
03:35are now no longer going to allow the government
03:39to house illegal migrants,
03:41migrants coming over on boats claiming asylum.
03:44You're not going to allow them to be housed in your local...
03:47I said we'd fight them.
03:49Yeah, can you just explain that?
03:51Because that was a new piece of information to you.
03:52Yeah, so basically central government
03:54scatters young males
03:57who cross the English Channel around the country
03:59and most come pro-rata to the north-east and the north-west
04:03and they're imposed upon councils
04:05and councils kind of, in theory, have to accept them.
04:09They're going to find a much more robust response here.
04:11Can you stop it, though?
04:13We give it a go.
04:14You're going to give it a go.
04:15And final question.
04:17What's your message to Keir Starmer?
04:21The message to Keir Starmer, sarcastically,
04:22is please keep doing what you're doing.
04:24And the message to Keir Starmer is,
04:27well, frankly, the Conservative Party's finished today.
04:29It's gone.
04:30It's dying in the shires.
04:31It has no future.
04:32It stands for nothing.
04:33It serves no purpose.
04:34Any chance of doing a deal with them to unite the right?
04:38I don't want to do a deal with them.
04:39We're going to win the next election on our own.
04:41OK, Nigel Frage, thank you very much.
04:43Excellent.