Suspended UKIP activist Suzanne Evans has spoken to LBC on Sunday afternoon, telling the nation how she wants to reform the party because she’s tired of being called a racist.
Speaking to Tom Swarbrick, Ms. Evans launched into a scathing tirade against grassroots members, the party’s National Executive Committee, and outgoing leader Nigel Farage, insisting that she would change the party to reflect her liberal, metropolitan image.
Swarbrick opened the discussion: “Iit’s a very strange way of describing the party that you seem to want to lead by calling some of the racist homophobic sexist?” leading Ms. Evans to say: “One of the things that I’d want to do with UKIP to give it a change of image. I’m sick to death of being called racist, homophobic, sexist, because of things that other people in the party have said that has absolutely nothing to do with me and are completely contrary to my opinion”.
She also took aim at UKIP’s National Executive Committee, stating: “You started this interview by saying I’m in the running for the leadership. I’m actually not because our unaccountable National Executive Committee decided to suspend me for tackling homophobia in the party and for challenging what I thought might be a potential case of election fraud.”
The incidents she referred to were that of Alan Craig, a devout Christian who was smeared as believing in a “gay cure” despite having never taken that position himself, and her behind-the-scenes agitating against black London Assembly member David Kurten who she claimed was not eligible to stand in the London elections.
Mr. Kurten was second on UKIP’s London list and Ms. Evans was third. Eliminating Mr. Kurten would have led to Ms. Evans getting elected to the London Assembly.
Speaking on LBC after Ms. Evans, Breitbart London editor Raheem Kassam told the show’s host that her attack on UKIP members was Ms. Evans’s “nasty party” moment – echoing when Tory Theresa May told the Conservative conference they should modernise and become more like David Cameron liberals. In October 2002 Ms. May told the Tory conference: “There’s a lot we need to do in this party of ours. Our base is too narrow and so, occasionally, are our sympathies. You know what some people call us – the Nasty Party.”
Despite her support for Andrea Leadsom, Ms. Evans appears to want to take UKIP down the route of the Conservative Party, and is supported by former Tories Neil Hamilton and Douglas Carswell in her ambitions.
Ms. Evans also said she would “absolutely insist” those who she disagrees with “step down from any positions” in UKIP if she were to become party leader, and lashed out at outgoing chief Nigel Farage for developing a “cult of personality” around him.
When asked if UKIP should be more “centrist” she said: “I couldn’t have put it better myself”.
“I’m one of the favourites, I have been for a long time,” she said, before issuing a “plea” to the National Executive Committee she attacked just a few moments ago to reinstate her as a member so that she can run in a leadership election.
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