Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Farage strikes a chord with Clacton voters

Polls show that Clacton-on-Sea seat is likely to be a close three-horse race between Labour, the Conservatives, and Reform UK

Farage strikes a chord with Clacton voters

Nigel Farage's brand of politics has found a home in the English seaside town of Clacton-on-Sea, where voters described the Reform UK leader as a straight talker who, unlike other candidates, understands their problems and wants to solve them.

Britain's July 4 election will be Farage's eighth attempt to win a seat in parliament after the anti-EU, anti-immigration campaigner entered the race proclaiming his aim to supplant the ruling Conservatives as the main party of the right.


Farage is an expensively educated former financial trader. But decades of railing against the establishment have earned him the trust of supporters who feel other politicians talk down to them.

"I feel like he's more normal. He understands us," Venetia Maynard, 29, a cleaner, said while out shopping on Monday.

Clacton has all the hallmarks of a British seaside resort: fish and chips, ice creams, and pockets of deprivation left by a shrunken tourism industry and decades of underinvestment.

Interviewed on the day Farage launched his Reform UK's plan for government, Maynard said she was going to vote for him although she didn't know that much about his policies.

Under Britain's electoral system, Reform can't win this election, Farage himself said on Monday. But he says Reform can emerge as the main opposition to a centre-left government of the Labour Party, which is forecast by polls to win a thumping majority.

First, Farage himself must win a seat in Clacton. Polls show the seat is likely to be a close three-horse race between Labour, the Conservatives and Reform.

Although he has been heckled on the campaign trail elsewhere, pelted with a milkshake and chunks of debris, no one in Clacton seemed to have a harsh word for him.

"I think he represents the working class a lot more than general politicians do. I mean, they’re so out of touch with the working class. How can they represent a labourer or a cleaner or a bus driver?" said Michael Chaplin, 32, a roofer, as he strolled along the seafront. Clacton is a place where many people feel left behind, he said.

Kevin Ives, 63, a carer, said Farage was “brilliant” and he would vote for him. "Because he says what’s totally obvious. If we keep bringing people into this country at the rate we are: eventually disaster."

All about Nigel

Cultivating an image of a pub-loving British patriot, Farage spent over 20 years as an elected member of the European Parliament while arguing for its abolition.

But although his party was able to win spots in European elections held under proportional representation, he never managed to win a seat of his own in parliament in the UK, under a first-past-the-post system that requires winning the most votes in a constituency.

In recent years he has worked the U.S. television circuit as a pro-Trump pundit.

Giles Watling, the Conservative candidate who has represented the area since 2017, said Farage had a "great personality" but voters should pick a candidate who cares more about the local area.

"What Nigel is doing is all about Nigel, and he doesn't really give two hoots for Clacton," Watling said.

Farage's previous political party, the pro-Brexit UK Independence Party, tasted its first success in Clacton when in 2014 a Conservative lawmaker defected to them and successfully defended the seat until 2017.

With Britain now outside the European Union, Farage's new mantra is that "Britain is Broken" - a message that resonates with voters who blame the ruling party for a turbulent and economically painful few years.

"I just think he’s a breath of fresh air," said Phil Tyler, 78, who works for the supermarket chain Tesco. "He gives me the sense that he’s really going to try and do something for this country." (Reuters)

More For You

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case
Bhim Kohli

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case

THE seven-year prison sentence handed to a 15-year-old boy convicted of the manslaughter of 80-year-old Bhim Sen Kohli is to be reviewed under the UK’s Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.

The Attorney General’s Office confirmed on Friday (5) that the teenager’s sentence will now be considered by the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less
Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama attends a prayer meet held for his long life at the Dalai Lama temple in the northern hill town of Dharamshala, India, July 5, 2025. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

THE Dalai Lama said on Saturday (5) he hopes to live until he is more than 130 years old, two decades longer than his previous prediction, following his assurance to followers that he would reincarnate as the spiritual head of the faith upon his death.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner was speaking during a ceremony organised by his followers to offer prayers for his long life, ahead of his 90th birthday on Sunday (6), and as China insists it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama told Reuters in December he might live to 110.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK heatwave by mid-July

Daytime temperatures meeting or exceeding set thresholds of 25°C

iStock

Met Office warns of potential third UK heatwave by mid-July

Key points

  • Met Office forecasts rising temperatures by mid-July
  • Possible third heatwave after record-breaking June
  • High pressure system likely to bring hot air from the Atlantic
  • Yellow rain warning and flood alerts issued in parts of Scotland and Cumbria

Possible heatwave to return by mid-July

The UK could experience its third heatwave in a month by mid-July, the Met Office has said. Forecasters expect rising heat and humidity during the second weekend of July, following two weekends of unusually warm weather in late June.

June was officially the hottest on record in England, and the return of high temperatures could mean another heatwave for parts of the country. However, the Met Office cautioned that it is too early to confirm how hot conditions will get.

Keep ReadingShow less
crypto

Two men have been jailed for defrauding investors of £1.5 million through a fake crypto investment scheme. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Two jailed over £1.5m crypto investment scam

TWO people who duped investors of £1.5 million by selling fake investments in crypto have been jailed for 12 years, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.

Raymondip Bedi, of Bromley, and Patrick Mavanga, of Peckham, conned at least 65 people by cold-calling them between February 2017 and June 2019. They operated companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP.

Keep ReadingShow less
Manchester Police probes over 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects

Photo for representation. (iStock)

Getty Images/iStockphoto

Manchester Police probes over 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects

GREATER MANCHESTER POLICE is now investigating more than 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects, following years of public criticism and institutional failings in tackling child sexual exploitation.

A new report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has revealed the force has made “significant improvements” in dealing with group-based sexual abuse and related crimes.

Keep ReadingShow less