The briefing war inside Ukip continues with the Nigel Farage camp hitting back at Patrick O’Flynn, after his remarks in the Times today. The battle is between two sides: those who are close to and work for Nigel Farage, and others in the party who are concerned about who the Ukip leader is listening to. Team Farage believe the battle is about power and influence with the leader. But the attacks are getting personal: one source close to the Ukip leader suggests that O’Flynn has had ‘personal problems and this may be the manifestation of them’.
Although Team Farage failed to deliver a victory in South Thanet, those who worked on his campaign are keen to point out that the party won four million votes under his leadership. They believe there is jealously in the party that the leader has bounced back after it was assumed his career was over. On the opposite side, the O’Flynn camp insist they are targeting those very folks close to Farage. Contrary to the idea that O’Flynn wants to remove Farage as leader, I understand that his comments were an attempt to ‘defend him’ from his his own team — namely his senior adviser Raheem Kassam and party secretary Matt Richardson. It’s these folks O’Flynn was referencing as the ‘Tea Party, ultra-aggressive American influence’.
And for good measure, the infamous former Ukip MEP Godfrey Bloom has popped up on the BBC to join the anti-Farage camp. He has called for Farage to step aside and backs Douglas Carswell to replace him:
‘Regardless of the politics or your feelings for Douglas Carswell, he’s clearly one of the most highest-principled man in politics. Extraordinary. He’s a sort of Dennis Skinner of the Right, if you will, so he’s a man of extraordinary presence and I think, naturally, should step forward now, and I think for the good of the party I think they should unite behind him.’
Carswell hasn’t said anything today so it’s unknown whether he is considering a leadership challenge, or if this is just Bloom speaking his mind. I believe O’Flynn will be popping up at some point today to explain his position, so we’ll hopefully hear more then about what his intentions are.
UPDATE: Guido has produced this helpful guide of the various factions developing in Ukip. Apparently, deputy chairman Suzanne Evans, who is part of the ‘coup team’, ‘screamed and cried’ when Farage’s deresignation was announced:
The briefing war inside Ukip continues with the Nigel Farage camp hitting back at Patrick O’Flynn, after his remarks in the Times today. The battle is between two sides: those who are close to and work for Nigel Farage, and others in the party who are concerned about who the Ukip leader is listening to. Team Farage
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