'Democratic outrage!' Nigel Farage slams lack of TV coverage for Reform as a 'disgrace'
Champion of Brexit vents fury at Ofcom rules on amount of airtime for his party as it soars in the polls after his bombshell political comeback.
Nigel Farage has condemned instructions for broadcasters to give Reform a fraction of the coverage of other parties as a "democratic outrage".
The Reform leader branded rules enforced by media regulator Ofcom to give each party “the appropriate level of coverage based on their past and current electoral support” as a "disgrace".
The TV channels are told “greater weight” must be given to how many votes parties received in past elections, with current standing in opinion polls a secondary factor.
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But Mr Farage said this left Reform at a huge disadvantage, because it is a relatively new party and did not even stand candidates in 317 seats at the last election after choosing not to oppose sitting Tory MPs - a decision not being repeated this time.
He said: “The Ofcom guidance for this election is that the heaviest weight should go to the last two elections, which when you are a brand new party puts you in an impossible position.
“It looks like broadcasters will be giving us less than 10 percent of their coverage, which is pretty horrific.”
The ruling also influenced decisions about which party leaders would be invited to take part in TV debates, he said.
A poll by More in Common found Mr Farage was considered most impressive politician among voters watching a BBC debate on Friday, with 25 percent regarding him as the winner followed by Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner on 19 percent.
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But Mr Farage has not been invited to debates featuring Sir Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak, including last week’s ITV debate and a BBC debate on June 26.
He said: “I would love to have a head-to-head debate with either of them. I would love to do that.
“I think the TV viewing figures would go up and who knows, we might even debate something properly.”
A recent poll by YouGov showed Reform nipping at the Tories’ heels with support from 17 percent of voters while Conservatives are on 19 percent. However, other recent surveys such as a poll by Survation continue to show the Tories well ahead.
