Nigel Farage’s attempt to shake off a deepening scandal by calling a byelection in his Clacton constituency appears to have backfired, with his main rivals announcing they will boycott the contest. The Reform UK leader resigned as MP on Tuesday, saying he wanted to be judged by voters, not the establishment or the media, but within hours the Conservatives, Labour, Restore Britain and the Liberal Democrats all said they would not stand candidates, branding the vote a “media circus” and a “vanity project”.
Farage is under investigation by the parliamentary standards watchdog over his failure to declare a £5m gift from the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne and financial support from his friend, the convicted fraudster George Cottrell. In a defiant announcement, he claimed there was a plot to prevent a Reform government and accused the media of a “pile-on” and of harassing his family. The party offered to pay the costs of the byelection, which can reach more than £250,000.
“All major parties boycotted Nigel Farage's byelection after he quit as MP over undeclared gifts from a crypto billionaire and a convicted fraudster.”
“It’s pathetic, and the Labour party is not going to indulge it,” a Labour spokesperson said. The party’s ruling executive decided to opt out after a meeting on Tuesday night. One senior ally of Andy Burnham, who is expected to become Labour leader and prime minister later this month, said the party was wary of engaging all its firepower when the new prime minister wanted to dominate messaging during the summer recess. The Lib Dems called for the byelection to be blocked until the verdict of the standards inquiry, which would be suspended during the campaign and could then be resumed.
Rupert Lowe, of Restore Britain, was the first to say his party would not participate until after the standards commissioner’s verdict. The Greens were the only party to have confirmed they wanted to oppose Farage, but local party discussions continued on Tuesday night about whether to stand a candidate. A byelection could take place as soon as August, but with no major opponents, Farage may face the unusual prospect of running against no one.