Nigel Farage Secretly Filmed Defending Reform Candidate Accused of Racism Over David Lammy Remarks

More videos have been released regarding Nigel Farage's alleged protection of Rear Admiral Chris Parry, who was accused of racism, and Reform UK's vetting process. ITV Exposure sent undercover reporters into the party over a 12-month period and has since released footage of its political practices.

One reporter was hired to work in the press office at Reform UK's Westminster headquarters. She was invited to a Christmas party before she officially started her job. During the party, she learned that Parry was expected to be sacked.

'Defend the Indefensible'

At the party, Ed Sumner, the party's director of communications, told the undercover reporter, whom he believed was part of his press office team, to be ready to 'defend the indefensible'. Parry was cited as an example, with Sumner reportedly describing him as 'clearly a racist' and saying he was expected to be sacked.

However, when the reporter started her job three weeks later, Parry was still part of Reform UK. Footage showed Farage discussing the matter with Sumner and other press office staff.

'He must apologise to Lammy, if David Lammy's taken offence,' Farage said. When Farage was told that Parry would not be happy about apologising, he responded that Parry needed to apologise and move on.

Parry was eventually suspended in March 2026 following a separate controversial remark concerning Shomrim, an unarmed Jewish neighbourhood watch group.

Parry Defends Lammy Comments

The root of the incident was Parry's 8 February 2025 tweet about Lammy, the Labour MP for Tottenham: 'Lammy must go home to the Caribbean where loyalty lies'.

Following the release of the recent footage discussing his standing with the party at the time, Parry posted a statement explaining why he had made the tweet: 'People will remember Lammy's vehement advocacy for trillions of pounds of reparations from the United Kingdom and his strident identification as a person from the Caribbean.'

Parry also clarified that he had posted the tweet before joining Reform UK. He alleged that the party had prevented him from giving the public context for his remarks, which he said were not about race but about Lammy's claims of being a 'proud Caribbean.'

Reform's Vetting Process

Reform UK has faced accusations of racism, while several of its members have been criticised for making remarks about people from different ethnic and religious backgrounds. The investigation also produced footage showing Reform UK councillors and candidates making racist, lewd and violent remarks.

The party's vetting process came under scrutiny. Separate footage showed Alex Lomas, a candidate for councillor who narrowly lost in Oldham, reportedly failed the vetting process twice but was subsequently authorised to stand. Reform denied that he had failed vetting.

In the footage, Lomas said he had failed vetting because he swore too much, called former Prime Minister Keir Starmer a 'w*****' and posted in support of far-right activist Tommy Robinson.

A separate video also showed Ian Frost, then chair of Reform UK Chester, who believed he was vetting a prospective candidate for the party, advising the undercover reporter to remove social media posts supporting Tommy Robinson or delete the account altogether.

Frost said that he believed the reporter to be a genuine candidate, gave him the benefit of the doubt and considered it unfair to judge him on one conversation.

'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,' the party said in a statement.