Racism, misogyny, Islamophobia - Is this the real Reform?

Jon Sopel (0:02)

This is a Global Production.

Dean Miller (0:05)

The Muslim thing that is going to be that thing that takes over everything, and then everyone just has one religion. Because apparently, King Charles is a genie. You heard of that one? What's up?

Charlie's a wizard. Yeah. Someone from the inside saw a prayer mat and all that in my little room. And he's...

Well, I think that's fucking traitorous.

Jon Sopel (0:27)

That was Reform Party Councillor Dean Miller from Bromley opining that the King is a fucking Muslim. That is the King who is also the Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

Emily Maitlis (0:45)

There are claims facing the party of racism, misogyny, bigotry and a whole lot more.

Reform is in bunker mode today. But how long can they stay there if things are about to get a whole lot worse? Welcome to The News Agents.

Alan Feeney (1:06)

The News Agents.

Jon Sopel (1:07)

It's Jon.

Emily Maitlis (1:08)

It's Maitlis.

Jon Sopel (1:09)

Just a few weeks after the Channel 4 investigation, which showed the leadership of Reform apparently willing to take backhanders and all sorts of ways of raising money for the party that were not entirely in line with electoral law. So ITV last night broadcast a bit of a documentary that is coming on Sunday, where undercover reporters were in various places embedded with Reform councillors, so elected officials from the Reform Party, not just ordinary people who are out canvassing, but the party's representatives in governments and councils around the country, expressing views that were offensive, bigoted, sexist, misogynist, racist, and as you say, Emily, potentially with a whole lot more to come.

Emily Maitlis (2:04)

Yeah, to put this in context, ITV has spent a year going undercover with parts of the Reform Party, councillors in Solihull, councillors in Bromley, and we are led to believe within the Reform Party HQ, within the press office, which we think is coming on Sunday. So we've just had, if you like, a sampler taste of some of those first clips, but they're pretty jaw-dropping, frankly.

The stuff about the king being a Muslim was explained latterly by the councillor who's now resigned, as I think he said, I was heavily medicated at the time. You know, I'm not sure I was in my right mind, but it doesn't sound out of kilter with some of the other pronouncements that reform councillors have been making. Alan Feeney, another one, Deputy Mayor of Solihull since May. I mean, this only goes back to the election in May. So it's the freshest iteration, if you like, of the Reform Party. He was calling Asian homeowners parasites. He states in the clip that we've seen so far that he thinks no more than 1% of the British population can be non-white. And he then goes on to win seats on Birmingham City Council and in Solihull.

And what we understand from the film is that he draws a line between the stuff that he says out loud and the stuff that he says to his mates in the pub. In other words, there is an understanding that what he says would not be tolerated, tolerable, by most people who heard it, but he says it anyway. I mean, we can have the chat about where the, you know, where the British public is on some of this language. But I think it's significant that Nigel Farage, who normally runs towards the gunfire, quite enjoys taking on whatever he calls the establishment, last night cancelled a major announcement that was due to take place, a sort of media appearance, a press call in Essex, which would have gone on this morning. So on some level, the party have heard what these men have said and realised not just that they have to be collateral damage and go, but that this is the beginning of what could be an extraordinarily painful weekend for reform if the worst is yet to come.

Jon Sopel (4:30)

Yeah, and reform have put out a sort of slightly trenchant, petulant statement. They've, you know, accusing ITV of having infiltrated our workplace, including commissioning an undercover reporter to provide altered identification documents, a address and credentials, so they could be given access to reforms headquarters, computer systems and spying its employees.

It said, the party said that this came at a time when Farage and other members of reform were being targeted by individuals who wished them harm.

I mean, look, I'm sorry. Yeah, you're going to go undercover because frankly, if you go undercover, that's where you find out some stuff that you might not find out otherwise. And it has been a legitimate source of journalistic inquiry for years. The hidden camera going undercover because that is the way you find stuff out. I knew there are very strict editorial controls normally associated with that.