Political positions of Nigel Farage

Nigel Farage with then U.S. President Donald Trump in 2019

Nigel Farage is a British politician and broadcaster who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Clacton and the Leader of Reform UK since 2024, having previously been its leader from 2019 to 2021 when it was called the Brexit Party. He also was the leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) from 2006 to 2009, and 2010 to 2016. Farage served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for South East England from 1999 until the UK's withdrawal from the European Union (EU) in 2020.

A prominent Eurosceptic since the early 1990s, Farage's views have attracted significant media attention throughout his political career.

Economy

From taking office as a UKIP MEP in 1999, Farage has often voiced opposition to the "euro project". His argument is that "a one-size-fits-all interest rate" cannot work for countries with structurally different economies, often using the example of Greece and Germany to emphasise contrast.

Farage strongly opposes the use of bailouts and says that "buying your own debt with taxpayers' money" will not solve the problem and that, "if we do, the next debt crisis won't be a country ... it will be the European Central Bank itself".

On the issue of welfare, Farage said in 2014 he wanted migrants to live in the UK for five years before being able to claim benefits, and for them to be ineligible for tax credits. In 2015 he suggested that tax avoidance was caused by "punitive tax rates", and wanted "fairer" taxes as a way to prevent it.

Electoral reform

During the campaigning before the UK voting system referendum of May 2011, which offered the two options of a continuation of first-past-the-post voting or an alternative vote system, Farage declared himself in favour of the latter, saying that a continuation of first-past-the-post would be a "nightmare" for UKIP, although he also said that AV would make little difference to UKIP's fortunes. The party's stance was decided by its central policy-making committee, although Farage expressed a preference for the AV+ system as it "would retain the constituency link and then also the second ballot ensured there were no wasted votes". After the 2015 general election, in which UKIP took a much lower proportion of seats than votes, Farage called the first-past-the-post voting system (FPTP) "totally bankrupt". He had said in 2011: "I completely lost faith in [FPTP] in 2005 when Blair was returned with a 60 seat majority on 36 per cent of the vote, or 22 per cent if you factor in low turnout."

Environment

In 2013 Farage criticised David Cameron's policy on wind turbines, describing it as covering "Britain in ugly disgusting ghastly windmills". An official energy policy document produced by UKIP while Farage was leader of the party stated that "UKIP strongly supports a clean environment and clean air", stressing that "coal-fired power stations must use clean technology to remove sulphur and nitrogen oxides, particulates and other pollutants". In a speech made to the European parliament on 11 September 2013, Farage cited a news story that the Arctic Sea ice cap had apparently grown from 2012 to 2013, saying that this was evidence of decades "of Euro-federalism combined with an increasing Green obsession", despite this being a minor milestone in a larger trend of sea ice decline.

Drugs and healthcare

Drugs

Farage has in the past taken an anti-prohibitionist position on recreational drugs. In an April 2014 phone-in interview hosted by The Daily Telegraph he argued that the war on drugs had been lost "many, many years ago", stating that "I hate drugs, I've never taken them myself, I hope I never do, but I just have a feeling that the criminalisation of all these drugs is actually not really helping British society." He argued in favour of a Royal Commission on drugs, which would explore all avenues as to how to legislate most effectively and deal with their related criminal and public health problems, including the possibility of their legalisation. In 2024 ITV News reported that Farage had "changed his mind on the idea of drug reform, particularly cannabis", with Farage saying drug reform in the United States "hasn't really made much difference".

Smoking ban

In 2013 Farage said that the smoking ban in enclosed public spaces was "silly and illiberal"; he recommended separate smoking areas along the lines of some German states. He said that banning things makes them more attractive to children, and stated that "Obesity is killing more people than smoking, you could ban chip shops, you could ban doughnuts. The point is we are big enough and ugly enough to make our own decisions".

NHS

In his 2015 book Farage reflected that, based on his experiences, "the NHS is so over-stretched that if you can afford private health care, you should take it, particularly for diagnostics and preventative medicine. In the NHS, the system is so battered and poorly run that unless you are really lucky, you will fall through the cracks. The NHS is, however, astonishingly good at critical care. But what testicular cancer taught me is that the NHS will probably let you down if you need screening, fast diagnosis and an operation at a time that suits you". He supports reform within the NHS, saying that its resources have become stretched due to increased immigration, and blaming Labour for high costs of new hospitals built through private finance initiatives.

Farage said in 2015 that money which the NHS could have spent on treating taxpayers with serious conditions was instead being spent on recent immigrants with HIV. A YouGov poll found 50 per cent of those taking part supported Farage, with 37 per cent saying that he was scaremongering.

Immigration

Muslim immigration

In 2014 Farage said that he supported Muslim immigrants who integrated to British society, but was against those who were "coming here to take us over", citing John Howard's Australia as a government to emulate in that regard. He told a Channel 4 documentary in 2015 that there was a "fifth column" of Islamic extremists in the United Kingdom. Farage has also argued that Muslim immigration to Britain and Europe has fuelled a rise in antisemitism and in an interview with LBC radio stated "What's fuelling it is that there are many more Muslim voices, and some of those Muslim voices are deeply, deeply critical of Israel. In fact, some of them even question the right of Israel to exist as a nation."

Enoch Powell

Farage has said that the "basic principle" of Conservative Party MP Enoch Powell's "Rivers of blood" speech was correct: "What he was warning about was the large influx of people into an area, that change an area beyond recognition, there is tension," he said." Farage has also publicly spoken of his admiration for Powell, once calling him his political hero.

Romanians

In a 2014 interview on the LBC radio station, Farage said that he would feel "concerned" if a group of Romanian men moved next door to him. When interviewer James O'Brien inquired what would be the difference between Romanian men moving next door and a group of German children, in reference to Farage's German wife and children, Farage replied: "You know the difference." He later expanded on this on the UKIP website, stating that "if we were able to operate a proper work permit scheme for Romanian nationals, with suitable checks, as recommended by UKIP, then nobody would need to be concerned if a group of Romanian nationals moved in next door to them."

Syrian refugees

Farage called on the British government in 2013 to accept more refugees from the Syrian Civil War. He later said that those refugees should be of the country's Christian minority, due to the existence of nearer Muslim-majority safe countries. During the ensuing migration crisis, Farage alleged that the majority of people claiming to be refugees were economic migrants, and that some were Islamic State militants.

HIV immigrants

In an interview in 2014, Farage suggested that people with HIV should be banned from moving to the UK. During the televised debates in advance of the 2015 election, he said that "You can come into Britain from anywhere in the world and get diagnosed with HIV and get the retro-viral drugs that cost up to £25,000 per year per patient... What we need to do is to put the NHS there for British people and families, who in many cases have paid into the system for decades."

Immigration preference

In a 2015 interview Farage stated that he had a "slight preference" for immigrants from countries such as India and Australia compared to those from Eastern Europe, as they "are in some ways more likely to speak English, understand common law and have a connection with this country".

Illegal immigrants

In 2013, Farage described the tone of the "Go Home" vans advertisements which recommended that illegal immigrants should "go home or face arrest, which he saw as an attempt by the government to be seen to be "doing something" to appeal to UKIP voters, as "nasty" and "unpleasant".

Foreign policy

Farage has been highly critical of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, saying "Nobody should forget that the most devastating direct consequences of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have not been suffered by the likes of Mr Blair, but by the civilian populations of these countries and of course by our own brave service personnel". Farage stated that migrant exodus from Libya had been caused by NATO military intervention, approved by David Cameron and Nicolas Sarkozy, in the civil war in Libya. When the UK Parliament was debating direct military involvement in Syria in 2013, Farage cited the financial and human costs and poor outcomes of the UK involvements in Iraq and Afghanistan as reasons for Britain not to become involved militarily in Syria. He considers rebel forces in Syria to have Islamic extremists among its ranks.

Russia

When asked in 2014 which leaders he admired, Farage said, "As an operator, but not as a human being, I would say Putin". Farage said that he did not approve of Putin politically. Later, in 2015, he said about Putin that "The European Union, and the West, view Putin as the devil. They want to view Putin as the devil. I'm not saying I want take him around for tea and meet mum on Sunday afternoon … But the point is, on this bigger overall battle [against ISIS in Syria] we need to start recognising we're on the same side". Farage accused the EU of having "blood on its hands" for allegedly encouraging the 2014 revolution in Ukraine. He said he did not support Russia's annexation of Crimea but that EU leaders had been "weak and vain", adding: "if you poke the Russian bear with a stick, it will respond". Farage said on 24 February 2022 that the Russian invasion of Ukraine was "A consequence of EU and NATO expansion ... It made no sense to poke the Russian bear with a stick. These are dark days for Europe". In June 2024, Farage said that the invasion was the fault of Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, but repeated claims that the West "provoked" it. He said that the enlargement of NATO gave Putin an excuse for invading because he could tell the Russian people "they're coming for us". Farage was criticised for these statements and was accused of pushing the Kremlin's narrative (see Russian allegations of NATO provocation).

Saudi Arabia

Farage has criticised Britain's close ties with Saudi Arabia. He said: "I think we need a complete re-appraisal of who Saudi Arabia are, what our relationship with them is, and stop extremist talk turning the minds of young, male Muslims in this country." In an interview with Fox News Channel, Farage criticised the West's reluctance to hold Saudi Arabia accountable for the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi and the kingdom's decades-long propagation of radical Wahhabism, while stressing the importance of British and American economic and security ties to the Kingdom.

Turkey

Farage accused Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's Turkey of "blackmailing" the EU over the European migrant crisis and Turkey's proposed European membership.

Iran

Farage previously opposed sanctions on Iran, and said in 2013 that he would not support an Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear facilities, stating: "I do not support acts of aggression, even from countries that feel their existence is threatened".

In 2018 he condemned Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's "record for standing up and defending this hardline Islamist regime" and declared that regime change was "absolutely the right thing" in Iran.

In 2024, Farage changed his position to support sanctions on Iran and condemned the United Nations Security Council for holding a minute of silence for Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. He has also opposed calls by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue an arrest warrant to Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu following the actions of Israel in the Israel–Hamas war, arguing "there is no moral equivalence between a terrorist organisation and the prime minister of a country that is going after those terrorists to try and stop October 7th from happening again."

In November 2024, Farage called for the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to be proscribed as a terrorist organisation.

United States

Farage speaking at the 2015 Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C. about the American elections

In a May 2016 interview with Robert Peston, Farage said that, whilst he had reservations on the views and character of 2016 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, if he were an eligible US voter he would vote for Trump in the 2016 presidential election, to prevent Hillary Clinton becoming president. Prior to Trump's presidential campaign, Farage had supported the presidential ambitions of Rand Paul, whom he described as his "political doppelgänger". Farage had also compared the Tea Party movement to UKIP, stating that they have their "own share of oddballs and mavericks who sometimes espouse pretty extreme stuff, but they also have truly impressive politicians". He was critical of the religious right, who he believed had "hijacked" the Republican Party, and referred to Sarah Palin as "downright scary".

In July 2016, Farage visited the Republican convention in Cleveland with his aide and office manager George Cottrell. Both Farage and Cottrell appeared on American television and engaged in discussions with Trump's aides before Cottrell was arrested by the FBI on 21 federal counts of fraud, money laundering and extortion. Farage "was unaware of Cottrell's alleged illegal activities and his arrest by the FBI came as a shock." Cottrell's arrest left Farage unable to access his personal diary. Cottrell ultimately pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud as part of a plea agreement with U.S. federal prosecutors and was sentenced to eight months in U.S. federal prison and was fined $30,000; the crime had been committed before Cottrell joined UKIP.

In August 2016 Farage and fellow Brexiteers Andy Wigmore and Arron Banks met Trump for the first time at a campaign fundraiser in Jackson, Mississippi. They were invited to the event by staffers for Mississippi governor Phil Bryant while attending the GOP convention. Afterwards, Trump invited them to his campaign rally that night. Trump asked Farage to speak at the rally and introduced him to the crowd as "Mr. Brexit".

In October 2016, following revelations of a 2005 audio recording in which Trump made lewd remarks about women and commented on the ease with which he could commit sexual assault, Farage said that Trump's comments were "ugly" but described them as "alpha male boasting" also stating that Trump was "not running to be Pope" and that women also make remarks they would not want to see reported. Farage's comments prompted several senior UKIP members to express concern privately, and resulted in public criticism of Farage from two UKIP MEPs, Jane Collins and William Dartmouth. As more publicity appeared about Trump's alleged groping and as the criticisms increased, Farage said he disagreed with Trump's comments about groping women and his comments on Muslim immigration.

In 2015, Farage was reported to have had close links with Trump's then chief strategist, Steve Bannon, when Bannon scheduled meetings for Farage with right-wing figures in Washington. In his book, The Purple Revolution: The Year That Changed Everything, Farage described Bannon as "my sort of chap."

After Trump's victory, Farage said that he "couldn't be happier" and in the same interview referred to outgoing president Barack Obama as a "loathsome individual" and "that Obama creature", remarks which prompted criticism. Labour MP John Woodcock criticised Farage's comments, saying they had "clear racist undertones." Farage was the first British politician to speak to Trump after his election, meeting with Trump in his eponymous Manhattan tower.

In November 2016, after becoming president-elect, Trump publicly suggested, via Twitter post, that the UK government name Farage as British ambassador to the United States. Trump's expression of a preference for a foreign nation's ambassador was "a startling break with diplomatic protocol" that was unprecedented in recent US history. The British government rejected the suggestion, with a Downing Street spokesman and then-Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson stressing that there was no vacancy in the position.

In 2017, Farage was listed as a person of interest by the FBI in their investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election because of his connections to Trump, WikiLeaks and Julian Assange. One source said that "if you triangulate Russia, WikiLeaks, Assange and Trump associates the person who comes up with the most hits is Nigel Farage." Farage responded, "This hysterical attempt to associate me with the Putin regime is a result of the liberal elite being unable to accept Brexit and the election of President Trump... I consider it extremely doubtful that I could be a person of interest to the FBI as I have no connections to Russia." Farage met with Assange and his lawyers, advocated for Assange and the UK Independence Party under Farage's leadership had long-standing links to Assange.

Trump presidency

In October 2017 Farage made controversial remarks during a discussion on LBC radio station after a caller who referred to himself as "Ahmed" told Farage he thought the pro-Israeli lobby in the United States was equally dangerous to the Russian interference in American politics. Farage responded by saying: "the Israeli lobby, you know, that's a reasonable point, Ahmed, because there are about 6 million Jewish people living in America, so as a percentage it's quite small, but in terms of influence it's quite big...in terms of money and influence, yep, they are a very powerful lobby," and "there are other very powerful foreign lobbies in the United States of America, and the Jewish lobby, with its links with the Israeli government, is one of those strong voices." Farage's remarks were condemned by the Campaign Against Antisemitism and the Anti-Defamation League, which said that Farage's comment "plays into deep-seated anti-Semitic tropes" and was fuel for extremist conspiracy theories.

Farage with Trump in 2018

In May 2018 Farage was an advocate for U.S. President Donald Trump to receive the Nobel Peace Prize on the basis of his attempt to bring better diplomatic relations between North Korea and South Korea as well as better diplomatic relations between North Korea and the United States. As a member of the European Parliament, Farage expressed his desire to begin an official petition for Trump to receive the award.

Farage endorsed Roy Moore in the United States Senate special election in Alabama. After numerous allegations of sexual misconduct were made against Moore, Farage publicly expressed his scepticism over the allegations. In May 2018, he expressed regret for having backed Moore, stating, "I should have thought about the whole thing far more deeply than I did, and it was a mistake."

In July 2018 Farage headlined a fundraiser for Lou Barletta, the Republican nominee in the 2018 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania.

Since 2020

Farage speaking at a Trump rally on 28 October 2020

After gaining no seats in the 2019 general election under the Brexit Party banner, Farage said he would leave the UK to work as a warm-up speaker for Trump's 2020 campaign rallies. In June 2020, Farage was exempted by US officials from the country's travel ban under a "national interest" clause, while Trump prepared for his first major election campaign rally since the COVID-19 pandemic. On 20 June, he posted a picture from the US and was later spotted at the Trump rally, taking part in a "Team Trump on Tour" panel discussion. Farage appeared in the audiences of rallies in states such as Michigan and Pennsylvania. In an Arizona rally on 29 October, Trump called Farage "one of the most powerful men in Europe" and invited him to speak on the stage, where he described Trump as the "most resilient and brave person" he had ever met. After the day of the election, Farage conceded that Trump lost "fair and square", but said "Donald Trump loses the odd battle, but he doesn't lose wars. He keeps fighting until he wins them".

In 2021 Farage undertook a six-week tour of the United States organised by the conservative group FreedomWorks. Entitled America's Comeback Tour, it saw him address Republican grassroots audiences across the country.

In April 2023, it was reported that Farage highly rated US Republican politician Ron DeSantis and that Farage thought DeSantis had "done a great job in Florida", the state he was governing. Ron DeSantis challenged Donald Trump in the 2024 Republican Party presidential primaries.

In May 2024, Farage announced that he would not be standing in the 2024 general election, preferring to focus on campaigning for the 2024 United States presidential election instead. However, on 3 June, he reversed this decision, announcing his intention to stand as MP for Clacton as leader of the Reform Party.

In May 2024, when Sky News asked Farage if he still backed Trump despite his criminal conviction, Farage responded: "More than ever". In July 2024, Farage condemned the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.

Australia

Farage has previously been supportive of the Liberal Party of Australia. In 2015, he praised the immigration policy of then-prime minister Tony Abbott. Farage had frequently endorsed an "Australian-style" points system of immigration for the United Kingdom. By 2018, Farage was more critical of the governing Liberal Party, saying "if in Australia there is not a greater connection with those who actually want patriotic values, for those who think that immigration needs looking at, for those who are really worried about energy prices, if the Liberal Party can't sort itself out, then something, a big shock will come along and replace it." In 2019, while speaking at the Sydney Conservative Political Action Conference, he condemned Malcolm Turnbull as a "snake" who "pretended to be a conservative", and praised his successor Scott Morrison, who had ousted Turnbull in a leadership spill the year prior.

Austria

Farage with Nicolas Dupont-Aignan in 2013

During the 2016 Austrian presidential election campaign, Farage said that Norbert Hofer, the Freedom Party candidate, would call for a "Brexit style referendum" if he won. Hofer, however, ruled out a referendum and asked Farage not to interfere in Austria's internal politics.

France

Farage initially endorsed Nicolas Dupont-Aignan of Debout la France, another party of the Alliance for Direct Democracy in Europe, and later supported Marine Le Pen of the National Front, for the second round of the 2017 French presidential election. Farage said that the basis for his endorsement of Le Pen was his belief that she would be more sympathetic to the UK following Brexit, in contrast to the pro-European Emmanuel Macron.

In 2018 Farage described French President Emmanuel Macron as a "globalist" who wanted "many more powers to be centralised in Brussels, powers taken from the member states".

Germany

Farage spoke at a rally for the far-right Alternative for Germany party in advance of the 2017 German federal election, having been personally invited by the party's deputy leader Beatrix von Storch.

Firearms

In 2014 Farage said that it was UKIP policy for handguns in the UK to be legalised and licensed, describing the current legislation, brought in after the Dunblane school massacre, as "ludicrous". He also said in 2014 that there was no link between responsible handgun ownership and gun crime.

Death penalty

Farage is opposed to the death penalty.

Thatcherism

In 2013, Farage referred to Margaret Thatcher as a "great patriotic lady" and said that he was the only politician "keeping the flame of Thatcherism alive". In 2014 he said that UKIP was not a "new Thatcherite party", stating: "Thatcherism was of its time, 40 years ago, to deal with a specific set of problems. For half the country it benefited them, for the other half it didn't."

LGBT issues

When asked on LBC in 2014, after same-sex marriage was legalised in England and Wales, whether he supported gay marriage, he answered that he does "not support the idea of same-sex marriages, all the while we're under the auspices of the European Court of Human Rights". He added that he would not campaign to abolish same-sex marriage. He also believes that people who oppose same-sex marriage, such as Christian and Muslim communities, should be allowed to speak out about their beliefs.

Farage has said that Margaret Thatcher's time as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom "was one I think of real advancement for gay people in society." According to PinkNews, Farage has defended past comments made by Boris Johnson in which he referred to gay people as "tank-topped bum boys".

Conspiracy theories

In 2014, Farage appeared in an online documentary, Bilderberg: The Movie, alongside a number of conspiracy theorists. In the film he said: "I've tried very hard not to believe in conspiracy theories," but accused the European Union of moving "towards supranationalism", adding: "I've got to know over the years the Van Rompuys, the Schulzes, you know, the Barrosos, even the Junckers, the Timmermans, and it's completely clear, they actually want to destroy the nation state as a unit". According to an investigation by the anti-racism group Hope Not Hate, Farage has retweeted Jack Posobiec, a promoter of the debunked Pizzagate conspiracy theory. A Brexit Party spokesman dismissed the findings as "a series of tangential, transient retweets." Farage has appeared alongside conspiracy theorists from the LaRouche movement and InfoWars.

In 2019, Farage described financier George Soros as "the biggest danger to the entire western world" and alleged Soros seeks "to undermine democracy and to fundamentally change the makeup, demographically, of the whole European continent". As Soros is of Jewish descent, the Jewish Community Security Trust said "Nigel Farage should ensure that his language does not help antisemitic conspiracy theories to spread in British politics".

Face veil ban

In 2013, Farage supported banning the face veil in schools, airports and banks. However, he criticised France's and Belgium's outright bans in public places. Previously, in 2010, Farage called for a ban in public places and public buildings similar to the French and Belgian bans.