Nigel Farage faced hostile jeers and heckles during a febrile PMQs | Politics | News
Reform party leader Nigel Farage speaking during Prime Minister’s Questions (Image: House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA Wire)
Farage, Farage, where the f*** is Farage blares outside the Houses of Parliament every Wednesday. The parody song, to the tune of the 1970s tune “Living Next Door to Alice” is one of many repeated on a never-ending brain-scrambling loop by anti-Brexit campaigner Steve Bray.
Unlike the lyrics, Farage was, on this occasion, inside the building readying himself for a shot at Sir Keir Starmer during Prime Minister’s Questions. It’s not often he gets the chance to take a swing at the PM on the floor of the Commons. But after lighting the blue touch paper on Tuesday with his remarks calling on people to react with “pure, cold rage” over the murder of teenager Henry Nowak, the stage was set.
Henry Nowak was brutally murdered (Image: Family/Solent News)
The most important exchange of this week’s showdown was, without question, the one between the Reform UK leader and Sir Keir.
Starmer was passionate, perhaps as passionate as I have ever seen him in the Commons, in his condemnation of Farage’s approach.
He seized on the comments by Henry Nowak’s father at the conclusion of the court case on Monday – saying that his son’s death should not be used to stoke division.
There was a febrile atmosphere in the chamber with Farage facing intense jeers and heckles, including from a committed group of Liberal Democrat MPs sitting immediately behind him.
Anti-Brexit campaigner Steve Bray protests every Wednesday (Image: Vuk Valcic/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock)
Earlier, Kemi Badenoch blasted Sir Keir, in what could be one of his last PMQs, over the country’s ballooning welfare bill and the Peter Mandelson scandal.
She made reference to the issue, and to speculation over Sir Keir’s future because of an expected leadership challenge, by speaking of “disappearing messages from a disappearing PM”.
Joke of the day went to Lib Dem leader, Sir Ed Davey, who mocked Labour’s “new weapon of war, long form essay” – following recent long written articles by Tony Blair, Wes Streeting, Andy Burnham and Sir Keir.
“It gives another meaning to the phrase, drone warfare”, he said to laughter.
Starmer responded with a rare dose of humour, ribbing Davey about family fun days and soft play.
It was a long 45-minute session of PMQs, harking back to the days of when John Bercow was Speaker and allowed proceedings to drag on and on.
Farage had already left the Commons by this stage.
Outside, “Farage, Farage, where the f*** is Farage” could be heard playing again.
