Thursday, September 03, 2026
Same old, same old from Farage
The Independent reports that the Reform UK leader has broken parliamentary rules on his first day back, after he filmed a video of himself on the roof of the Houses of Parliament.
The paper says that permission from parliamentary authorities must be sought before any filming takes place on the estate, while the roof is even more sensitive as a result of its implications for security and personal safety. They understand that Farage did not seek permission to record the social media video.
Another article in the Independent tells us that Farage has launched an extraordinary attack on members of the Commons standards committee, claiming that the inquiry into his non-declaration of a £5 million gift is rigged against him:
In outlandish comments, which have echoes of Boris Johnson’s attack on the Privileges Committee in 2022, Mr Farage has suggested that MPs on the Standards Committee have already prejudged him as guilty without a fair hearing.
He told the BBC: “Well, I mean, that investigation, the outcome. Have you seen who is on the committee? I think we know the outcome already.”
The tactic used by Mr Johnson and his allies to try to distract from the charges of lying to parliament over the Partygate scandal during the Covid pandemic eventually led to a much stiffer punishment and him losing the right to have a former MP’s pass to be allowed to return.
There were very personal attacks aimed at Harriet Harman at the time, who chaired the committee deliberations.
Mr Farage was challenged by the BBC’s political editor Chris Mason over his decision to call a by-election in Clacton in August, a contest where no other major party stood and Mr Farage had to spend most of his time contesting comedian candidate Count Binface.
Explaining that he had gone to his constituents because of the investigation against him, the Reform UK leader was asked about the inquiry.
He lashed out, attacking the integrity of the committee membership chaired by Tory MP Alberto Costa.
Mr Mason asked Mr Farage: “You are clearly suggesting you don't think they can give you a fair hearing?”
Mr Farage responded: “If you look at the composition. If you look at the political composition of the committee, I thought before they gave a judgment, we’d ask the people to give a judgment.”
He really does appear to think that he is above the rules that apply to everybody else.
