The ex-Clacton-on-Sea MP announced his decision to stand down today
Kemi Badenoch has launched a blistering attack on Nigel Farage after announcing his resignation as Reform MP, branding the move a "hissy fit".
Speaking at a Politico live event in London, the Conservative Party leader reacted to the triggering of a by-election in Clacton-on-Sea and argued it should "not be a by-election on his terms".
Confirming his decision in a statement to the nation, Mr Farage said: "I’ve thought about it hard and I’ve decided about it today, today I will resign as a Member of Parliament for Clacton-on-Sea, thereby forcing a by-election which would happen I hope in short order.
"I've decided that the people of Clacton should be the judges of my actions. This will be a people versus the establishment by-election.
"It's a chance to stick two fingers up to the entire establishment to frankly tell them where to go, and that is why I will be putting my name forward to stand in this by-election. I will fight to win."
Delivering her reaction to Mr Farage's resignation, Mrs Badenoch said: "He went on telly having a hissy fit because for the first time, he is finally having to face some scrutiny after a very long honeymoon and he cannot handle it.
"All of us MPs have to register our donations, we have to register our gifts, nobody is above the law. He decides that he doesn't want to do what everyone else has to do, that he is better than everybody, and now there's an investigation."
The Tory leader argued there should only be a by-election in Clacton if Mr Farage is "found guilty following the investigation" into his finances.
She said: "There should not be a by-election on his terms. What there should be is a by-election if the investigation finds him guilty. Those are the rules. No one else has tried to break those rules except Nigel Farage.
"He is a man who is cracking under pressure, that's why he was shouting at journalists yesterday. And what we have to ask ourselves is, is this someone who can do the top job? He hasn't become Prime Minister yet and he's already cracking under the pressure."
Mrs Badenoch accused Mr Farage of "hiding" and refusing to answer questions on the current scandals surrounding him, instead choosing to resign.
She argued: "The thing he should do is answer some questions. He should man up and answer some questions. He hasn't had a press conference since these scandals broke, whether about George Cottrell at the weekend or the extremely dodgy £5million gift which he got for reasons that he cannot explain.
"He should come out and answer those questions. Instead he's hiding, saying they're out to get me. This is paranoia. Nobody's out to get him. I remember when Starmer had his freebie scandal, when Boris Johnson had Partygate. Everybody in public life has to answer difficult questions. He thinks that he doesn't need to."
Mrs Badenoch added: "And basically in doing this, what he is saying is that he's already guilty. It feels like an admission of guilt. He should have come out, acknowledged that he had done something wrong, said sorry, and everybody would have moved on.
"He doesn't want to do that. We're now having another man's ego by-election, just as we had in Makerfield, and by-election about one person's ego."
Pressed on whether she will stand a Tory candidate in the by-election, Mrs Badenoch failed to confirm whether she would challenge Mr Farage.
She said: "I don't need to respond to what is one man's gimmick. This is a gimmick. It's a waste of taxpayers money. He doesn't want to follow due process. He'll find out what we do when the time is right.
"I don't need to jump to the beat of Nigel Farage's drum, and what we're actually seeing for the first time is the press aren't giving him a free ride. He is cracking up.
"This is a man basically threatened the press yesterday talking about Leveson. I think that's extraordinary. What's he actually going to do if we give him power? A free press is one of the foundational values of this country."
Mrs Badenoch concluded: "What I'm focused on right now, and I've set my team on it, is how to make sure that we avoid wasting taxpayers money with two by-elections, and we're exploring every avenue. So until that's decided, I'm not saying anything about what's happening in Clacton.
