Nigel Farage gives exclusive interview blasting Burnham and calling for election

Nigel Farage has used an exclusive interview to launch a blistering attack on Prime Minister Andy Burnham, accusing him of having no mandate and demanding an immediate general election. Farage described Burnham's policy agenda as "the biggest change in politics in 40 years" and argued that it was not the manifesto Labour won on in 2024. He said the public is "sick of this game of musical chairs" where party internal decisions replace voter choice.

Farage, the leader of Reform UK, focused heavily on immigration, claiming Burnham has failed to address the issue of small boat crossings across the English Channel. He dismissed government figures showing a one-third reduction in crossings, saying the situation remains "unimaginable" and pointing to serious crimes committed by those who entered illegally. He also criticised the government's early prison release scheme, linking it to the case of PC Andrew Harper's killers, and called for the deportation of 10,000 foreign national prisoners as a quick fix to prison overcrowding.

On domestic policy, Farage dismissed Burnham's move to cut bus fares back to two pounds as a "mere gesture" and accused the prime minister of offering "Tweedledum and Tweedledee" policies. He questioned the feasibility of reindustrialisation given high energy prices and net zero commitments. Farage also warned that Burnham's focus on Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) would actually increase them because clearing hotels would push migrants into residential areas.

Farage acknowledged that Burnham's by-election victory in Makerfield was significant, noting that Reform UK had swept the board in the same area in local elections. But he insisted the overall political picture had not changed and that the real battle between Reform and Labour would be in the North of England. He expressed astonishment that neither the Liberal Democrats nor the Conservative Party were calling for an election, claiming a clear majority of the public now wanted one.

The interview also touched on energy bills, with Farage calling for VAT to be scrapped entirely and noting that 86 per cent of households heated by oil or gas would not benefit from the government's current 45-pound saving. He described the prime minister's 10-year plans as absurd given that Burnham is the seventh prime minister in a decade.