This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/mar/30/nigel-farage-brushes-off-ukip-poll-dip-to-launch-election-campaign
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Nigel Farage brushes off Ukip poll dip to launch election campaign | Nigel Farage brushes off Ukip poll dip to launch election campaign |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Ukip’s leader, Nigel Farage, has brushed off suggestions that his party is losing momentum but admitted that he was facing a “very hard” battle to win seats as he launched five key election pledges. | Ukip’s leader, Nigel Farage, has brushed off suggestions that his party is losing momentum but admitted that he was facing a “very hard” battle to win seats as he launched five key election pledges. |
| Farage chose to unveil his priorities in the middle of a Westminster street, promising to leave the EU, exert greater control over the UK’s borders, give an extra £3bn to the NHS, cut foreign aid, and remove tax for those on the minimum wage. | Farage chose to unveil his priorities in the middle of a Westminster street, promising to leave the EU, exert greater control over the UK’s borders, give an extra £3bn to the NHS, cut foreign aid, and remove tax for those on the minimum wage. |
| Mobbed by cameras and reporters, Farage was flanked by three senior party officials, his MP Mark Reckless, and two supporters from ethnic minority backgrounds, in front of a lorry bearing a billboard with a giant image of his face. Douglas Carswell, the Ukip MP for Clacton who defected from the Tories, was absent as he was campaigning in his constituency. | Mobbed by cameras and reporters, Farage was flanked by three senior party officials, his MP Mark Reckless, and two supporters from ethnic minority backgrounds, in front of a lorry bearing a billboard with a giant image of his face. Douglas Carswell, the Ukip MP for Clacton who defected from the Tories, was absent as he was campaigning in his constituency. |
| “This pledge card shows you pretty clearly what Ukip is for,” said Farage. “We’ve got a completely distinctive plan from the other political parties. We are the only party saying Britain should have a trade relationship with Europe but not membership of the EU.” | “This pledge card shows you pretty clearly what Ukip is for,” said Farage. “We’ve got a completely distinctive plan from the other political parties. We are the only party saying Britain should have a trade relationship with Europe but not membership of the EU.” |
| Although the pledge card referred simply to “controlling our borders”, not immigration, Farage said Ukip was the only party to be “offering a solution to the immigration crisis” and claimed it wanted to talk about the issue in a constructive way. | Although the pledge card referred simply to “controlling our borders”, not immigration, Farage said Ukip was the only party to be “offering a solution to the immigration crisis” and claimed it wanted to talk about the issue in a constructive way. |
| Questioned on the NHS pledge, Farage also had to admit it would not be possible to allocate an extra £3bn immediately because it would be paid for out of the UK’s contribution to the EU and it would take time to leave the bloc. | Questioned on the NHS pledge, Farage also had to admit it would not be possible to allocate an extra £3bn immediately because it would be paid for out of the UK’s contribution to the EU and it would take time to leave the bloc. |
| The latest polls suggest Ukip’s vote is getting slightly squeezed as the campaign gets under way. The most recent numbers from the Tory peer Lord Ashcroft had Ukip on 10% – its lowest since May – while a ComRes poll for the Daily Mail put Ukip on 12% and ICM put support at 13%. A YouGov poll for the Sunday Times had the party higher on 16%. | |
| Farage said the campaign had “only been going about five hours, so I wouldn’t say we’ve lost momentum”. | Farage said the campaign had “only been going about five hours, so I wouldn’t say we’ve lost momentum”. |
| But he acknowledged Ukip would find it “very hard” to win seats under the first-past-the-post system and said his own electoral battle to gain South Thanet would be a “hell of a fight”. | But he acknowledged Ukip would find it “very hard” to win seats under the first-past-the-post system and said his own electoral battle to gain South Thanet would be a “hell of a fight”. |
| Once again, he refused to put a figure on the number of seats he believed Ukip would win but he said it could be more than 10. Analysts are predicting that Ukip is more likely to win between four and six seats. | Once again, he refused to put a figure on the number of seats he believed Ukip would win but he said it could be more than 10. Analysts are predicting that Ukip is more likely to win between four and six seats. |
| Farage said he had talked to some Conservatives informally about working with them to secure an early EU referendum in the next parliament and some were keen, while others were “milky”. | Farage said he had talked to some Conservatives informally about working with them to secure an early EU referendum in the next parliament and some were keen, while others were “milky”. |
| Challenged about whether the campaign, featuring his own face prominently, shows Ukip as too much of a one-man band, Farage said: “Yes, it is my face on the pledge card – I am the leader of the party. All this one-man band business, it’s better than a no-man band.” | Challenged about whether the campaign, featuring his own face prominently, shows Ukip as too much of a one-man band, Farage said: “Yes, it is my face on the pledge card – I am the leader of the party. All this one-man band business, it’s better than a no-man band.” |
| The Ukip leader said he had done no preparation ahead of Thursday’s seven-way election debates, but he was hoping for a breakthrough moment as much as the other leaders. | The Ukip leader said he had done no preparation ahead of Thursday’s seven-way election debates, but he was hoping for a breakthrough moment as much as the other leaders. |