General election latest: Reform drops three candidates in racism row and reports Channel 4 to election watchdog – live – MASHAHER

Reform UK has withdrawn support from three of its parliamentary candidates.

The party, spearheaded by Nigel Farage, is no longer endorsing Edward Oakenfull, who is standing in Derbyshire Dales, Robert Lomas, a candidate in Barnsley North, and Leslie Lilley, standing in Southend East and Rochford.

The announcement was made after alleged comments made by the three candidates emerged in the media.

Reform UK campaigner Andrew Parker said he was “glad” that the party had reported Channel 4 to the Electoral Commission, after the broadcaster released footage of him using a racial slur to describe Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Reform UK’s secretary Adam Richardson has claimed that Mr Parker “was a plant” in the Channel 4 footage which was recorded by an undercover journalist.

In a letter to the Electoral Commission, Mr Richardson said: “We request an immediate investigation into both Mr Parker and Channel 4 News, including any production houses that might have been used to create the piece.”

When he was told that Reform UK had reported Channel 4 to the Electoral Commission, Mr Parker said: “Good, I’m glad.”

He declined to say whether he had been paid by Channel 4 to appear in the footage, instead telling the PA news agency that “it’ll all come out in the papers, what’ll come out is the truth”.

Mr Parker declined to comment further.

Mr Parker, who was filmed as part of an undercover investigation by Channel 4 News, said: “I’ve always been a Tory voter. But what annoys me is that f***ing P*** we’ve got in. What good is he? You tell me, you know. He’s just wet. F***ing useless.”

The U.K. general election on July 4 is just days away now, no doubt to the relief of the party leaders who have crisscrossed the country in a grueling month of campaigning.

This campaign doesn’t seem to have shifted the political dial much, if at all, with the left-of-center Labour Party still the clear favorite to defeat the Conservatives of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and return to power for the first time in 14 years.

If the polls are broadly accurate — and even the Tories have acknowledged their likely defeat — then Labour leader Keir Starmer will at some point on July 5 be driven to meet King Charles III at Buckingham Palace in order to get the go-ahead to form a government.

Rishi Sunak expected to spend the day talking about how he was fighting but fighting for every vote, with less than a week to go before the election.

The normally cerebral prime minister was clearly emotional as he talked about the hurt and anger he felt after a Reform activist used racial slurs against him.

Reform UK has said it has reported Channel 4 to the Electoral Commission, after the broadcaster released footage of an activist campaigning for Nigel Farage using a racial slur to describe Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Campaigner Andrew Parker also suggested migrants should be used as “target practice” in the recording by an undercover journalist.

In a letter to the Electoral Commission, the party’s secretary Adam Richardson claimed that it was “entirely evident that Mr Parker was a plant within the Channel 4 news piece”.

He added: “The Channel 4 broadcast has clearly been made to harm Reform UK during an election period and this cannot be described as anything short of election interference.”

Read more from Joe Middleton here:

Sir Keir Starmer said he shared Rishi Sunak’s disgust after a Reform UK campaigner used a racial slur to describe the prime minister.

The Labour leader accused Reform UK leader Nigel Farage of not doing enough following the incident, and added that it is the leader who sets the “tone, the culture and the standards” of a political party.

Speaking to reporters in the South East of England, he said: “I don’t think (Nigel Farage) has shown the leadership he should’ve shown. There’s no good condemning remarks after the event.

“If you lead a party you set the tone, and the culture, and the standards of your party, and I don’t think he’s done enough in terms of leadership.”

Asked if he sympathises with the Prime Minister following the racial slur, Sir Keir said: “I do, and I thought what he said about his daughters in particular was very powerful.

“And I’m glad he said it and I share his disgust at the comments that were made.”