Brexiteer turns against Nigel Farage and accuses him of 'conning' Leave voters

From courting and fostering xenophobia in his drive to leave the EU, to inciting violence by saying he’d “pick up a rifle” if Brexit doesn’t happen, there have been plenty of valid accusations thrown at Nigel Farage.

But accusing him of being a secret Remainer is not one of them.

An LBC Radio caller has decided to make just that claim, telling the Brexit Party leader:

Your party could make a real difference. But I don't believe you really want to see us come out [of the EU].

Mr Farage had been defending Boris Johnson's claim that Remainers in parliament are "holding the country hostage", when Tez, the 75-year-old caller, highlighted the less than democratic nature of Mr Farage's own political vehicle, pointing out:

You say you believe in democracy, but you haven’t been elected democratically to your party.

It's not the first time Mr Farage has been accused of being less than democratic - here was the time he called for people against Brexit to be removed from the civil service and military.

Tez was seemingly basing his accusations on the fact that Mr Farage recently defected from Ukip, of which the politician was a member for 26 years. He said:

You could have stayed with a party but you just keep switching positions. You're another pundit who can't be relied upon. I don't believe you.

Defending his decision to leave Ukip, Mr Farage said:

I was chairman of it, national campaign manager, head cook, bottle washer and leader for 11 years and I packed it up because the party went rotten.

And speaking of his decision not to allow people to become members of Brexit Party, he said:

Sometimes when parties become very democratic, they can go wrong. The Labour Party putting on lots of members has made it go in a direction that many would say is anti Semitic.

To be fair, given the likely political leanings of many in the Brexit Party's fanbase, that's arguably a good call. But as, Mr Farage said several times to Tez, "that's by the by".

Tez, who said he was arrested during the 1975 referendum on the UK's membership of the European Community, remained convinced that Mr Farage was one of those who are "conning" Leave voters:

I’ve seen more history than you and I know when people are conning us. And we are conned constantly by you so-called pundits and leaders... 

... I agree, we need a much cleaner break. We're not going to get it through Boris Johnson, we're not going to get it through the establishment and we're not going to get it through the media and pundits like you.

Once the call was over, a nonplussed Mr Farage told listeners:

Well, that was very interesting phone call. It's not often that I'm sort of accused of being a Remainer basically so I have to ponder on that one for a moment.

HT New European

More: Prank caller tells Nigel Farage he changed his mind about Brexit after being kicked by a horse