Uh oh. After multiple reports of controversial candidates, Reform UK boss Nigel Farage has announced that he is threatening a vetting firm with legal action. The party leader has accused the company, Vetting.com, of ‘stitching up’ Reform UK. Golly…
In April, the Farage-founded party signed a £144,000 contract with Vetting.com on the agreement the firm would flag up unsuitable parliamentary candidates with extreme views. The vetting company is owned by Sphinx Technology Ltd – which is in turn co-owned by Colin Bloom, an ex-Tory adviser who worked under Boris Johnson and who was made a CBE by the former Conservative party leader last year. Reform was assured at the time that despite Bloom’s background there would be no conflict of interest in Vetting.com working for Farage’s group. But as Mr S wrote on Monday, Nige now insists that his party has been ‘let down’ by the organisation.
After the nomination deadline passed, a number of Reform candidates have come under scrutiny for past remarks — including Ian Gribbin and Jack Aaron. Farage pointed blame at the vetting company his party used, fuming: ‘This is an establishment stitch-up. The owner of the vetting company has deep links to the Tory party, and they have some serious questions to answer.’
For its part, Vetting.com told the Telegraph that the timing of the election meant the firm couldn’t complete the necessary checks in time, adding that Bloom was ‘politically neutral’. To add to that, the company’s website says that instead of being an ‘outsourced background screening company’, it provides clients ‘with the ability to complete your own background screening in house’. How curious. Reform UK insiders have informed the newspaper that the vetting company has offered to refund the money in full — but added that it won’t return to the party’s account until after the general election.
Currently, Farage is receiving legal advice on what action he can take against the firm, while party sources told the Telegraph that there have been discussions about referring the matter to the police. Reform’s candidate saga rumbles on…
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