Reform UK leader Nigel Farage backed down when he was asked who was lying over claims he’d been told not to hold constituency surgeries because of security concerns
Nigel Farage quizzed on if he lied about Speaker’s Office advice
Nigel Farage has backed down on his claim that Commons authorities told him not to hold constituency surgeries on security grounds.
When asked who was lying after parliamentary sources denied it, the Reform leader rowed back. Last month Mr Farage claimed he would hold surgeries “when Parliament allows me”. He said he’d been given guidance not to hold in-person surgeries by “the Speaker’s Office” and the parliamentary security team.
His claims were disputed by parliamentary sources – who said no such advice had been given as it would interfere with Mr Farage’s democratic duties. He was challenged that the Speaker’s Office had denied this and parliamentary security had no record and asked: “Which one of you is lying?”
A humbled Mr Farage responded: “The Speaker’s Office is always right.” Since becoming an MP in July, the Reform leader has been repeatedly accused of not prioritising his Commons role, coming under fire for spending time in the US in particular and not holding in-person surgeries in his Clacton constituency.
During a phone-in on LBC in September, Mr Farage suggested he had not yet held an in-person surgery for security reasons. Asked whether he had been advised for his own security not to hold surgeries, he replied: “I would have thought that would make sense, wouldn’t you?”
He said the guidance had been given by “the Speaker’s (Sir Lindsay Hoyle’s) Office, and beneath the Speaker’s Office there is a security team who give advice and say you should do some things and not do others”. “So we’re not in a fit state to do the old-style surgeries, but do you know what, if you’ve got something to say to me as a Clacton resident, Zoom is not the end of the world,” Mr Farage added.
There is no record of this advice having been given to the MP by either the Speaker’s Office or Parliament’s security team and neither have any recollection of such a conversation, it is understood.
At the time, Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay said: “As a constituency MP in Chorley, I hold regular surgeries myself with constituents – and whenever a Member asks for my advice on this matter, I always say that if you are going to hold constituency surgeries, make sure you take advice from the Parliamentary Security Department – and do so safely.”
A House of Commons spokesperson said: “The ability for MPs to perform their Parliamentary duties safely, both on and off the estate, is fundamental to our democracy. The Parliamentary Security Department (PSD), working closely with the police, offer all MPs a range of security measures for those with offices or surgeries in their constituencies, helping to ensure a safe working environment.
“We do not comment on individual MPs’ security arrangements or advice because we would not wish to compromise the safety of MPs, Parliamentary staff or members of the public, but these are kept under continuous review.”
