Murnaghan Interview with Nigel Farage, former UKIP Leader, 24.07.16

ANY QUOTES USED MUST BE ATTRIBUTED TO MURNAGHAN, SKY NEWS

NB: Due to very loud background noise not everything said is clearly audible.

DERMOT MURNAGHAN: Well now, a year ago not many people here in the United States would have thought Hillary Clinton would be going head to head with Donald Trump in the battle for the Oval Office.  The billionaire businessman has defied the expectations of course of political commentators and pollsters and his own party, riding on a wave of anti-establishment sentiment and populist policies, perhaps not all that dissimilar to Nigel Farage’s campaign for the UK to leave the European Union.  Now I caught up with the former UKIP leader, he was at the Republican’s convention as it was drawing to a close.
Well Nigel Farage, good to see you here, it’s a bit of a jamboree, a bit like a UKIP conference really.

NIGEL FARAGE: Well UKIP is always fun but it’s not this much fun but what it’s got in common with UKIP is the sheer unpredictability of it.  I’d expect to see something very stage managed, it’s far from that.  There were people out there last night who refused to endorse Trump, it was very [inaudible].

DM: Does anyone know who you are?

NIGEL FARAGE: It is unbelievable.  I mean the resonance here of Brexit with grassroots Republicans is unbelievable and they see it that the establishment can be beaten, change can happen, there are some similarities.  London has become quite disconnected with the rest of, well certainly England and Wales.  We saw that in the result and the big feeling here is that Washington is almost like a separate country from the rest of America.

DM: So do you think it has given the Trump campaign a bit of a boost?  Of course he was over the day of the Brexit result in Scotland wasn’t he?

NIGEL FARAGE: I do and the other thing is this.  Well why did we win Brexit?  All the experts said it would be a 60% turnout, it was a 73% turnout and the evidence I’ve got is that all over the country people were arriving at polling stations saying what do we do, how do we vote?  And what Trump is going to try and do this week is he is going to try and connect with blue collar America, people who might have [inaudible] and it is very similar for the voter to Brexit.  

DM: So would this make it a perfect political year for you?  You’ve got Brexit and you would like to see President Trump in November.

NIGEL FARAGE: Having condemned Obama for coming to the UK to take us [inaudible], I am not endorsing anybody although I have to say, I’d never vote for Hillary.  

DM: But do you like what he says?  Let’s talk about some of the policies, do you like what he says about immigration?

NIGEL FARAGE: I like the fact that he’s talking about it, I like the fact that he’s daring to take on an issue that many in Washington don’t want to do.

DM: But do you like what he says about building walls and forced repatriation?

NIGEL FARAGE:  No, no, I don’t and I feel very uncomfortable about two things really.  One, when there were protestors here, he was encouraging his own supporters to get [inaudible] out the protestors and I felt very uncomfortable about that but I also think what he is saying about Muslims – and we have got some other politicians in Europe saying the same thing – is we are labelling whole sections of our community effectively as bad and that is not the way forward.  

DM: So he is going too far on that.  You said in an interview here is this lot make you feel left wing.

NIGEL FARAGE: Oh very much so, yes.  Look, well why?  Well we may well speak the same language but the cultural differences are really big.  I was here on Tuesday night and …

DM: But left wing?  What’s too right wing about them?

NIGEL FARAGE: Well when you speak to this lot about public healthcare provision they think it is a very bad idea, that’s just one example.

DM: So did you?

NIGEL FARAGE: No, that’s ridiculous.  What I said is we ought to have a debate about it.  In France they do it differently, I think debate is a good thing in all sorts of policies.  

DM: Go on, what else is too right wing for you?

NIGEL FARAGE: Well culturally, on Tuesday Chris Christie spoke and he got this crowd chanting about Hillary Clinton ‘Lock her up’ and I thought, “Is this really happening?”  

DM: Okay, what about the open carrying of guns in this state, that kind of libertarianism, which is something that you in the United Kingdom, in a different way, is something that you put forward.

NIGEL FARAGE: I don't think the Olympic team have to go to Calais to practice pistol shooting, I think there are sensible ways round it but look, frankly, if I try and talk to any of these people here, friends of mine that are here, about their gun laws, I think it is absolutely mad that you can go to a supermarket and buy a repeating rifle without basically proving who you are.  I find some of that stuff really strange.

DM: With thoughts about developments back home, the progress of Brexit, first and foremost is it too slow for you?  Do you detect foot dragging?

NIGEL FARAGE: Well I’ll tell you what, we’ve got August coming up, a month in which there is no working in Brussels anyway, I do actually can see the argument that after 40 years we haven’t got any trade negotiators so I think the Prime Minister deserves time and the three Brexiteers deserve time to get their teams together but I don’t want to see it drag out too long.   There are 17.5 million people who very clearly said they want us out of the EU and they want our territorial [inaudible] back.  

DM: So would you say that if Article 50 is not triggered by the beginning of 2017 then you will start making more of a fuss?

NIGEL FARAGE: Yes and I will also say this, if the wishes of that referendum are not carried out by the general election in 2020 we could see yet more huge changes in [inaudible].

DM: And you are saying the single market is over because you understand the four freedoms, one of them is freedom of movement and there can be no negotiating on this now then with the EU, they will stick by their four freedoms and you say Brexit must mean an end to free movement?

NIGEL FARAGE: Well that’s right and in the end I hope that David Davis is successful in getting tariff free trade, I think it is very possible given how much the German car market needs us, the French wine market needs us and they have got elections coming up next year but if it came to a point down the road where that wasn’t possible, one thing I’m certain of is no deal is better than the current deal that we’ve got.

DM: And any thoughts on the leadership of your party?  Any thoughts on who you’d like to see take over?

NIGEL FARAGE: No, I’m going to let UKIP sort that out.  Look, I haven’t retired, I haven’t got a shack in the hills, I’m still around but it won’t be me who leads the party at the next general election.  We’ve got some good candidates and …

DM: Will you endorse someone eventually?

NIGEL FARAGE: When they win, yes.  

DM: Okay and what about your own political future?

NIGEL FARAGE: Well I am still leading a group in the European Parliament, I’m in a good position there to observe what’s going on and to comment on what’s going on and once Article 50 is trigged I will be encouraging, helping if I can, the government to do its job and I won’t be shy in saying so.

DM: And if you were offered a place in the Lords, what would your reaction be?

NIGEL FARAGE: I don't think that is going to happen.

DM: But if you were?

NIGEL FARAGE: I don't think that is going to happen, the establishment don’t like me very much.

DM: But you still haven’t said, if you were offered a place in the House of Lords, is it something you’d consider?

NIGEL FARAGE: I’ll consider anything in life, I’m open minded but right now I’m enjoying the fact that I’ve stepped down as UKIP leader, it’s allowing me to go out and do different things including being here this week.

DM: Okay Mr Farage, good to see you, thank you very much indeed.