Nigel Farage has been told he’s telling a “pack of lies” over claims there are streets in Oldham where “no-one speaks English”. Mike – a former street cleaner in the Greater Manchester town – today took the Reform UK leader to task on LBC over his remarks on the BBC last month. Calling into the radio station, he said: “Nigel, you made a statement a couple of weeks ago that there are streets in Oldham that can’t speak English. Name a street in Oldham where the entire street can’t speak English please”. Mr Farage swerved the question and instead referred to an account in a Guardian article where a journalist was accompanied by a translator. He added: “I was surprised by the lack of English that was spoken. I talked to people working in healthcare… who said there were quite a lot of people in Oldham who had been there – often for 20-30 years – who barely knew the language.” The caller Mike, who said he spent the last 10 years of his life for Oldham street cleaning, replied: “I think he’s talking a pack of lies, Nigel. You name a street that can’t speak English.” Mr Farage again failed to name a specific street, and instead told LBC host Nick Ferrari: “I don’t know whether he [Mike] knocks on doors.” Earlier this month the leader of Oldham council, Arooj Shah, hit out at Mr Farage’s “stupid and inaccurate” remarks after he told a BBC presenter: “I could take you to streets in Oldham where no-one speaks English.” Ms Shah added at the time: “As Reform and the Conservative Party go to war with each other for a tiny slice of the British electorate, trying to antagonise and provoke hate and division to grab a handful of votes, residents in Oldham and across the UK want answers to the real issues facing people today.” The Reform UK leader also said he would be willing to lead a merged Conservative-Reform style political party. He said his own partywas close to a “tipping point” where it would eclipse the Tories in the national polls. Earlier this week one survey showed the Conservatives just one point ahead of Mr Farage’s party. “I think we are very close to a tipping point,” he told LBC Radio. Mr Farage, who has spoken about leading a reverse takeover of the Conservative Party, said he believed “something new is going to emerge on the centre-right” of politics. “But do I think I’m capable of leading a national opposition to a Labour Party with a big majority, where I can stand up and hold them to account on issues? Yes.” He added: “I would be prepared to lead the centre-right in this country, a centre-right that stands up for small business, a centre-right that believes in borders, a centre-right that isn’t scared of standing up for the British people.”
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