One More Gaffe ...

Nigel Farage: One more gaffe and Tories risk losing all seats.

The Reform UK leader’s remarks came after Rishi Sunak was forced to apologise for missing a ceremony to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

Dominic Penna, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT9 June 2024 • 10:43am

Reform UK has risen by an average of three points in the opinion polls since Nigel Farage's dramatic return CREDIT: Tejas Sandhu/Shutterstock

Nigel Farage has claimed the Conservative Party “could lose all their seats” if they make one more gaffe on the campaign trail.

The Reform UK leader’s remarks came after Rishi Sunak was forced to apologise for missing a major international ceremony to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

It was the latest in a series of gaffes that have marred the Prime Minister’s campaign, leading to criticism from opposition parties and even his own MPs.

Mr Farage told the Sunday Express: “One more gaffe like that [D-Day] and they could all lose their seats.

He added that his party has a “six-year masterplan” to “reshape politics” and stage a takeover of Britain’s political Right.

“This election is just our beginning. It’s the start of a serious attempt to create a coherent party that genuinely believes in this country. It’s about establishing a group of people in Westminster who are united on key policies.”

And in a direct appeal to “Red Wall” voters in traditional Labour heartlands who backed the Conservatives for the first time in 2019, he said: “You were betrayed by the Tories who pretended to take my agenda. Now you can vote for it.”

Reform has risen by an average of three points in the opinion polls since Mr Farage’s dramatic return to frontline politics last week, which also saw him reverse his decision not to stand for election.

Successive polls by YouGov and Redfield & Wilton Strategies showed Reform within just two points of the Conservatives, leading to suggestions they could eventually cross over.

EXPLORE THE LATEST POLLINGIt came as Tim Montgomerie, the founder of the influential Conservative Home website, said Mr Sunak’s decision to miss the international D-Day commemorations was “the biggest gaffe I can remember in British politics”.Speaking to Sky’s Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, he said: “It’s bigger than Theresa May’s gaffe on the manifesto, it’s certainly bigger than the [Gillian] Duffy thing.“The Tory Party was already accepting that it was lost, but the danger now is such a loss of confidence in the campaign, such a loss of hope, particularly coming so soon after Farage’s U-turn.”He added: “Rishi Sunak is not a bad man, he made a massive error, but I think it’s one of the things that we will be pondering for years to come as to how it happened. It will define his premiership, this is that big.”Mel Stride, the Work and Pensions Secretary, insisted Mr Sunak had “apologised unequivocally” for his decision, adding that he “deeply regrets” his early departure.Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, stayed for the international event, which gave him the opportunity to mingle with world leaders on the global stage.

Sir Keir and Grant Shapps, the Tory Defence Secretary, both featured in a social media video shared by Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, from which Mr Sunak was absent. DT.