Sunak reveals anger as daughters forced to hear Reform activist call him racist slur
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Rishi Sunak did not hold back in his battle with Reform UK on Friday, expressing his pain and frustration after his daughters witnessed a canvasser for Nigel Farage's party using a derogatory term towards him.
Andrew Parker was discovered using a racial slur while campaigning in Clacton, Essex, where Mr. Farage is running for Member of Parliament.
Mr. Parker, who was secretly recorded during an investigation by Channel 4 News, expressed his frustration by saying: "I have always supported the Conservative Party. But I am disappointed by the current leader. What has he accomplished? He seems incapable and ineffective."
Essex Police is quickly looking into the comments to see if any laws have been broken.
During a recent school visit in Teesside, the prime minister spoke to reporters about his daughters witnessing Reform supporters insulting him using derogatory language. He expressed that it was upsetting and angered him, and suggested that Nigel Farage should address the issue.
This happened after Mr. Sunak accused Mr. Farage of trying to please Putin by shifting blame to the West for the invasion of Ukraine. This change in strategy was aimed at countering the influence of the right-wing insurgent party, which has been attracting Conservative voters. In recent weeks, advisors and MPs in the party's more moderate faction have been urging the prime minister to condemn the extremism present among some Reform supporters. However, the prime minister has been trying to take a more conciliatory approach towards the party.
In explaining why he chose to say the offensive term aloud, the prime minister said to the media, "I said it on purpose even though I didn't want to. I carefully selected my words. I really didn't want to say it. I absolutely didn't want to. But I believe it's necessary to address this issue directly and be honest about it."
In response to a question about his feelings regarding some previous Conservative Party supporters turning towards Reform UK, given the reported instances of racism and homophobia within the party, Mr. Sunak expressed concern. He noted that when Reform candidates and volunteers are not held accountable for using offensive language and expressing discriminatory views, it reflects poorly on the party's overall culture.
Andrew Tate is not a significant advocate for men. He is a disgusting misogynist. Our politics and nation are superior to that. As the prime minister, and more importantly as a father of two young daughters, it is my responsibility to denounce this harmful and divisive conduct.
Before, there were pictures taken of Mr. Farage with Andrew Tate.
A video that aired on Channel 4 featured a Reform UK canvasser who referred to the Pride flag as "degenerate" and insinuated that members of the LGBT+ community are pedophiles.
Labour leader Keir Starmer expressed his surprise at the "obviously racist" video.
Mr Farage tried to separate himself from the remarks, stating that he was shocked and saddened by the terrible opinions expressed.
But when it came out that Mr. Parker also acts in his spare time, the leader of Reform UK claimed that the recorded remarks were a "scheme".
During his interview on ITV's Loose Women, he stated: "It was all just a performance from the beginning."
He mentioned that Mr. Parker had been speaking harshly because he had been drinking alcohol after watching a football game.
"Being drunk can cause people to behave in a mean way. The behavior was truly mean," he said, and continued: "I must say, this situation was clearly planned to make me look bad. I have no doubt about that."
When questioned about whether he believed Mr. Parker had received payment to undermine Reform UK, he responded saying, "I am unsure if he was compensated or not. I am suggesting that it could be a possibility, but I am uncertain. There seems to be some questionable behavior at play."
Mr. Parker told Reform in Clacton that he works as a property developer and at first said he wasn't an actor, even though his work history can be found on the internet.
Peter Harris, who worked with Farage during the election in Clacton, told The Independent that Parker only came to help once. It just so happened that this was the same day that Channel 4 was secretly filming, and they happened to catch Parker getting into his car.
"He's not from around here, but the issue is that we receive a lot of volunteers making it difficult to thoroughly check each one. However, I had a feeling that something was off about him when I first met him."
The campaign office in Clacton, located near the ocean, has cameras monitoring the main entrance. The speaker emphasized that their campaign will be closely watched and analyzed by others. They instructed their volunteers to be aware that any mistakes or issues will be amplified due to Nigel being their candidate.
Channel 4 is saying they did not give any money to Mr. Parker or anyone else. They are confident in their unbiased journalism and believe the truth is clear in their reporting. They first met Mr. Parker at the Reform UK party headquarters, where he was working as a Reform party canvasser. Channel 4 did not pay Mr. Parker or any other canvassers for this story. They had never met Mr. Parker before and filmed him secretly during an undercover operation.
Mr. Parker expressed regret for his remarks, refuted accusations of racism, and explained that it was only casual banter akin to conversations among friends in a bar, said in the heat of the moment.
