Conservatives 'already in civil war' following election defeat claims Nigel Farage: 'They're using me in the argument!'

Conservatives 'already in civil war' following election defeat claims Nigel Farage: 'They're using me in the argument!'

WATCH NOW: Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaks to GB News following election victory

GB News
Georgia Pearce

By Georgia Pearce


Published: 08/07/2024

- 14:45

The Reform UK leader won five seats in Parliament after securing over four million votes in last week's election

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has claimed that he is being "used by the Conservatives" in the party's "civil war" following their election defeat.

Farage led a surprising victory for the party despite a short election campaign, receiving over four million votes and five seats in Parliament.


Speaking to GB News, Farage claimed that the huge defeat for the Tories has left them fighting amongst themselves, as speculation grows as to who from the party will defect to Reform UK.

When asked if any Conservative MPs have "flirted" the idea of moving over to his party, Farage claimed they are still processing their loss to Labour.

Nigel Farage and Rishi Sunak

Nigel Farage claims he is being 'used in the argument' of the Conservative 'civil war' following the election defeat

GB News / PA

Farage said: "They're already in civil war. With the election result, the ink is barely dry on the paper and they're at war."

Detailing how the Tories are split in their stance on Reform UK, he added: "You have people like Suella Braverman, people like the father of the house Sir Edward Leigh who say 'we must welcome Nigel into the Conservative Party'.

"And then you have the other wing, which is David Cameron, William Hague and a big majority of the of the of the 121 MPs who would want nothing to do with me or with Reform. I'm being used at the minute as part of the argument in the middle."

In criticism of the Conservatives following their monumental defeat, Farage predicted that the party will descend into a period of "internecine warfare".

Nigel Farage

Nigel Farage won five seats in Parliament after securing over four million votes in last week's election

PA

Farage told GB News: "The truth is, the Conservative Party is a broad church, with no shared religion of any kind at all."

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:

He continued: "They will go into I suspect, a lengthy period of internecine warfare. They are not an effective political force."

Reflecting on the election result, Farage was quizzed by Charlie on whether five MPs for Reform UK will "make a difference" in the House of Commons.

Farage responded: "In the Commons itself we can make arguments, but it's in the country where we'll make a difference.

"It's in the country where I'm going to be campaigning, right up to the local elections next year and on to the Welsh Parliament elections, etc, in the years to come."

Nigel Farage

Nigel Farage sat down with GB News reporter Charlie Peters to discuss his election win

GB News

Remaining optimistic for the future of Reform UK, Farage claimed: "I think we have a major opportunity to build a mass movement, grassroots organisation. And that's where the opposition will come."

When asked if he was "disappointed" by the current voting system and the outcome of seats for the party, Farage stated: "Breakthroughs are never disappointing. The breakthroughs are always good.

"The first-past-the-post system is absolutely brutal. We could have got over four million votes and no seats under this system, if we had proportional representation we'd be at nearly 100 seats."

You may like