Reform UK has suspended councillors accused of airing racist, sexist or extremist views during an undercover probe. ITV recorded councillor Alan Feeney, the deputy mayor of Solihull, calling Asian homeowners “parasites”.

He was caught on camera adding: “I’d be saying no more than 1% of [the] British population can be non-white… you’d need a proper nuclear option, like literally drag them out of their homes, stick them on planes and f*** them off to Pakistan, which you’ll never do in a month of Sundays… You just have to make it a country they don’t want to be in… I mean you’re getting to a point where you ban Muslims from standing from public office.”

In the run-up to the 2026 local election, Feeney was filmed undercover with Reform local election candidates Jamie Campbell and Chris Whelan talking about where a local mosque might be being built. Campbell said: “There’s got to be a way of stopping that. Like, go and buy some pork chops… we’ll bury it in the ground.”

In one instance, Whelan was filmed talking about a female Reform candidate where he said: “F*** me, if she was my daughter, it would still be bath night on a Thursday… Time for your bath… I’ll wash you properly this time. Yes. Dirty bastard”. In response, Feeney said: “Oh god, we’re all going to end up in the papers”.

Following ITV’s investigation, Chris Whelan announced he had resigned from Reform on 12 October “on personal and health grounds”. Feeney announced he has left Reform “for personal reasons”.

Meanwhile Dean Miller, a Reform councillor for Bromley, was recorded by ITV saying “apparently King Charles is a f****** Muslim… cut the c***** head off”.

Miller told ITV he is a disabled individual who was heavily medicated at the time, and he has resigned from Reform.

In Makerfield, an undercover journalist met Tameside Reform councillor Raymond Dunning who said he’d deport everyone in country “that doesn’t deserve to be here and their children as well”.

He added: “First thing you’re f****** gone, bang… And then I’d pick up the pieces after that… 18 to 30-year-old young lads, train them up in the army in insurgency tactics so they can go street by street, house by house, picking the c**** up.”

This is the latest scandal to plunge Nigel Farage’s party into crisis despite his attempts to improve its professionalism.

In July 2024, Mr Farage acknowledged his party had “a few bad apples” but promised they “will be long gone, and we will never have any of their type back in our organisation. You have my 100% promise on that.”

Channel 4 News broadcast an undercover investigation by Verbatim Investigations in September 2026 which exposed senior figures in Reform UK discussing potential breaches of UK party funding laws.

All the councillors identified in the ITV sting have either been suspended or left the party, Reform UK confirmed last night.

Reform UK said: “Where members, activists and councillors have clearly behaved inappropriately, investigations have commenced. In some cases, there have been suspensions and due process must be followed.

“Reform UK has improved and prioritised its vetting procedures, but from time to time, a handful of individuals who do not share our values will initially make it through vetting. This is the same for all organisations.”

A Conservative spokesman said: “Nigel Farage promised to make Reform ready for Government. These sorry individuals are proof he has failed.”

Labour chair Bridget Phillipson MP said: “The extreme racism and appalling behaviour exposed by this investigation is truly sickening.

“Nigel Farage can’t shrug these latest revelations off as being a few bad apples. Every Reform councillor, council candidate or party member found to have made such despicable comments must be thrown out of Reform UK immediately.

“Nigel Farage needs to explain why this keeps happening in his party and why he is failing to deal with blatant racism among those who stand for public office with his backing. It’s clear that Farage and his party are determined to poison our politics and threaten the shared British values Labour will always proudly defend.

“As every day passes, the evidence piles up yet higher as to why Nigel Farage and Reform are completely unfit for office.”

Undercover: A Year In Reform, Sunday 18th October at 10.20pm on ITV1, ITVX, STV & STV Player.

Reform UK Plunged into New Scandal as Undercover ITV Probe Exposes Violent, Racist Threats

Reform UK is facing renewed scrutiny after an undercover ITV investigation recorded party councillors, candidates and activists making racist, Islamophobic, sexist and violent remarks. The revelations have raised fresh questions about the party’s candidate-selection procedures, its internal culture and Nigel Farage’s promises to remove extremists from its ranks.

The investigation, published by ITV News on 14 October 2026, followed Reform figures during local election campaigning and by-election contests across England and Wales. Some of the recorded comments targeted Asian communities and Muslims, while others included disturbing remarks about women and threats of violence. Several individuals featured in the footage have since left the party, with some also resigning their council positions. <Cite refs={[“turn313710news18″,”turn313710news9”]}/>

The controversy comes at a sensitive time for Reform UK, which has built much of its political appeal around immigration control, dissatisfaction with the established parties and promises to change the way Britain is governed. The investigation has put the spotlight on whether the party’s internal checks are strong enough to ensure that its representatives meet the standards it publicly claims to uphold.

What did the ITV investigation uncover?

ITV’s investigation was conducted over approximately a year. Undercover reporters gathered footage during election campaigns and gained access to conversations involving people associated with Reform UK.

Among those filmed was Alan Feeney, a councillor in Solihull and Birmingham who had previously been a Conservative. ITV reported that he made racist remarks about Asian residents and discussed removing people from their homes and sending them to Pakistan.

Other footage showed Jamie Campbell and Chris Whelan, who were also elected as Reform councillors, making offensive comments. Whelan was recorded making sexually explicit remarks about a female candidate, including a statement suggesting he would sexually assault her if given the opportunity to hug her.

In a separate recording, Bromley councillor Dean Miller was reported to have made an extreme remark about King Charles, based on an unfounded claim about the King’s religion. Other footage featured hostile language about Muslims, black children and Asian communities. <Cite refs={[“turn313710news18″,”turn313710news23”]}/>

The comments are serious because they came from people who had sought, or obtained, elected office under the Reform banner. Councillors have responsibilities to represent all residents in their wards, regardless of race, religion or background.

It is important, however, to distinguish the conduct of particular individuals from the views of every party member or voter. The recordings raise questions about those featured and the party’s selection procedures; they do not establish that every Reform representative shares the same attitudes.

Farage faces questions over candidate vetting

The controversy has renewed scrutiny of Farage’s pledge to professionalise Reform UK and improve its vetting process.

The party leader has previously said he does not want extremists or bigots in the organisation. Following the latest investigation, he argued that vetting cannot predict everything a person might say in the future and noted that some individuals filmed by ITV had previously belonged to other political parties.

Farage also suggested that the investigation reflected the establishment’s desire to keep Reform out of political power. <Cite refs={[“turn313710search13″,”turn313710news18”]}/>

His response highlights the competing arguments now surrounding the scandal. Reform maintains that individuals can behave inappropriately after being selected and that the party should be judged by how it responds when misconduct comes to light.

Critics, however, argue that the footage raises a deeper question: whether warning signs were missed before candidates were approved, and whether the party responded adequately when concerns about particular individuals were raised.

The issue is particularly significant for a party that has expanded its presence in local government. As its number of councillors and candidates grows, the process of checking applicants’ histories, public statements and conduct becomes increasingly important.

A robust vetting system cannot guarantee that every candidate will behave appropriately. But it should identify credible warning signs, establish clear standards and provide a reliable process for investigating allegations.

Several councillors leave the party

The investigation has already had concrete consequences.

ITV reported that Alan Feeney, Jamie Campbell and Chris Whelan had left Reform UK following the revelations. Feeney initially said he would continue as an independent councillor, while Campbell and Whelan resigned from their council roles as well. Dean Miller and Raymond Dunning were also among the individuals reported to have left the party while retaining their council seats as independents. Other councillors featured in the investigation remained in office at the time of ITV’s reporting. <Cite refs={[“turn313710search4″,”turn313710news17”]}/>

Feeney subsequently issued an apology, describing his comments as offensive and unacceptable and acknowledging that they had caused hurt. The departures do not, by themselves, settle every question raised by the investigation, but they demonstrate that the footage has had direct consequences for some of those involved.

Reform has said investigations have begun into members, activists and councillors whose conduct was shown in the recordings. It has also stated that some individuals have been suspended and insisted that due process must be followed.

The party’s response will be assessed partly by whether its investigations are transparent, whether disciplinary decisions are consistent and whether it explains how the problems occurred.

A wider question about political culture

The investigation has also exposed concerns about the way some party representatives speak privately about groups of people and political opponents.

One of the most troubling aspects is the contrast between public campaigning and private conversations. Candidates ask voters for their trust and support, but elected representatives are also expected to exercise judgement, respect the law and serve the whole community.

Racist and religiously abusive language can undermine public confidence in that responsibility. Sexist remarks and statements suggesting sexual violence raise separate concerns about whether individuals are suitable to represent the public.

The standards expected of politicians should not depend on party affiliation. The same principles apply to Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats, Reform UK and other political organisations: candidates should be held accountable for their conduct, and credible allegations should be investigated fairly.

There is also a distinction between advocating restrictive immigration policies and expressing hatred towards people because of their ethnicity or religion. Immigration, asylum and integration are legitimate subjects of political debate. But disagreement over policy does not justify threats, dehumanising language or discriminatory treatment.

That distinction is important because a political party can argue for stricter border controls while still being expected to reject racism and violence among its representatives.

Reform says it is taking action

In its response to ITV, Reform UK said there was no place for racism in the party and that it had improved and prioritised its vetting procedures. The party also stressed that not everyone recorded by the undercover reporters was a member and said individual cases should be handled through appropriate procedures. <Cite refs={[“turn313710search2″,”turn313710search10”]}/>

The statement sets out the party’s position, but the effectiveness of its response will depend on what happens next.

Reform will need to establish whether its existing procedures were followed, whether relevant information was available before candidates were approved and whether complaints were handled properly. If weaknesses are identified, the party could face pressure to strengthen background checks, clarify disciplinary rules and create more reliable channels for reporting misconduct.

It must also address concerns about whether candidates are ever encouraged to conceal controversial associations rather than confront them honestly. ITV reported footage in which a party branch figure advised an undercover reporter to delete social media posts associated with far-right activist Tommy Robinson before applying to become a candidate. The individual involved disputed aspects of how the conversation should be interpreted. <Cite refs={[“turn313710search2″,”turn313710news9”]}/>

Such allegations make the vetting debate more complicated than a simple question of whether individual candidates made offensive comments. They raise questions about the culture surrounding candidate selection and what behaviour the organisation is prepared to tolerate.

What the scandal means for Reform’s future

The political consequences will depend on how the party responds and how voters interpret the findings. The investigation may reinforce existing concerns among critics, while supporters may argue that the behaviour of a limited number of individuals should not define the entire organisation.

Neither reaction removes the need for accountability. A party with a substantial local-government presence has a responsibility to ensure that candidates understand the standards expected of them and that serious misconduct has meaningful consequences.

The issue also presents a test of Farage’s leadership. Promises to remove extremists are straightforward to make, but implementing them requires consistent decisions, even when the people involved have electoral value or personal connections within the party.

Reform has an opportunity to demonstrate that its stated opposition to racism is reflected in its procedures and actions. Equally, continued revelations or unclear disciplinary decisions could intensify scrutiny of whether its safeguards are adequate.

Accountability must go beyond political point-scoring

The ITV investigation has brought disturbing statements into public view and raised legitimate questions about candidate vetting, party culture and the conduct of elected officials.

The people recorded are responsible for their own words and actions. The party leadership, meanwhile, must explain what checks were in place, what it knew and how it will prevent similar problems in the future.

It would be wrong to use the allegations to label every Reform supporter as racist. It would be equally wrong to dismiss the recordings simply because they are politically inconvenient or because the party believes it has been unfairly targeted.

Ultimately, the test is whether political organisations apply their standards consistently. Voters are entitled to expect representatives who can debate contentious policies without resorting to racist abuse, misogyny or threats of violence.

For Reform UK, the immediate challenge is to show that its stated values are more than campaign language. The coming disciplinary decisions and any changes to its vetting procedures will provide a clearer indication of how seriously the party intends to address the concerns exposed by ITV.