Nigel Farage has doubled down on his attacks on Anas Sarwar, with the Reform UK leader using a visit to Scotland to again accuse him of “sectarian politics”.
Mr Farage claimed the Scottish Labour leader has a “record of obsession” – citing a speech he gave in Holyrood in 2020 as evidence of this.
His comments came as he unveiled a new defection to his Reform UK party, with councillor Duncan Massey, who had been a Conservative representative on Aberdeen City Council, now a member.
Mr Farage also promised another defection, this time from Labour, would come on Monday afternoon as he visits Hamilton, where a Holyrood by-election is taking place.
That by-election has been dominated by a row over a Reform advert which has been branded “racist” by Reform’s opponents, and which claims that Mr Sarwar will “prioritise” the Pakistani community in Scotland.
Asked about this, Mr Farage insisted Reform UK “don’t talk about race at all”.
He pointed out his party’s chairman, Zia Yusuf, was someone who “is Scottish born, but comes from parents who come from the Indian subcontinent”.
Welcome to Lower Deeside Councillor Duncan Massey ✅
— Reform UK Scotland (@ReformUKScot) June 2, 2025
Scotland needs Reform.
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Mr Farage continued: “We think everybody should be treated equally. We object, very strongly, to the segmentation of people into different types.”
Adding that the Scottish Labour leader has a “record of obsession on this issue”, he went on to reference a speech Mr Sarwar gave in 2020 where he noted that key figures across Scotland, from the judiciary, to council chief executives to head teachers, were all white.
Mr Farage said: “I think that speech he gave was sectarian in its very nature – we are the south Asian community, we are going to take over the country and take over the world.
“We believe what he said was a form of sectarian politics and we don’t like it one little bit.”
His comments came after First Minister John Swinney claimed the Reform UK leader “doesn’t care about Scotland”.
With an opinion poll having suggested Reform could be the second-largest party at Holyrood after next May’s Scottish elections, the SNP leader spoke about the “deeply concerning rise in support for Farage”.
Mr Swinney added: “Be in no doubt, Nigel Farage doesn’t care about Scotland. He poses a threat to our values and must be stopped, and only the SNP can do that.”
