UKIP leader Nigel Farage has defended a member of his party who works in the porn industry, reasoning that no laws have been broken. John Langley, aka Jonny Rockard has been working in the industry for 30 years. He now refers to himself as a talent scout, manager and promoter.
Mr Farage’s comments came during an interview with the Telegraph this weekend. Asked how many more UKIP candidates in the upcoming general and local elections will turn out to have had “colourful” careers, Mr Farage replied “Oh, please. He hasn’t done anything illegal, has he? You know, when I look at the people who have been jailed from the other parties, I think this is a fairly minor issue.”
Mr Langley is currently the vice-chair of UKIP’s Bristol branch according to the Mirror. He is currently in the running for the Stockwood ward of Bristol City Council, and stood for election last May in Brislington East, coming second with 886 votes.
He said: “This is no big deal. It is just electioneering and it is the type of thing you expect in the run up to any election. I have never made a big deal out of what I do and I am not breaking any laws.
“UKIP is a working class party which appeals to working class people. Normal people go to the pub and enjoy a pint and then probably go home and enjoy adult entertainment. What people do in their private lives is really up to them. It’s got nothing to do with politics and I cannot see why there should be any problem with any of this.”
Senior UKIP members have said that Mr Langley disclosed his career choice when he applied to be a candidate, and that they have no problem with it.
Speaking to the Telegraph, Mr Farage said that his party will be fielding a record number of candidates in May. “We have 5,000 local election candidates. That’s huge progress,” he said. “Our biggest ever push before I think was just shy of 2,000. So that’s very significant. This is how the Lib Dems did it in the ‘90s, building up their base through local councils and this sort of politics.”
He also declined to make personal attacks on his opponents, despite Ukip being branded the party of “fruitcakes, loons and closet racists” by Prime Minister David Cameron. “I am sure he is a very decent, honest, nice family man. I am not playing the game,” he said.
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