Nigel Farage live: Clacton voters blast Reform leader's 'weird' by-election plot as Count Binface unmasked

Nigel Farage live: Clacton voters blast Reform leader's 'weird' by-election plot as Count Binface unmasked Reform UK leader Nigel Farage's vanity by-election appears to have spectacularly backfired with his only major challenger being a comedian who goes by the name Count Binface Voters in Clacton slammed Nigel Farage's vanity by-election, branding him as "wasting money" that could set taxpayers back £200,000 all to see off a challenge from Count Binface. Farage has been an MP for just over two years but voters in Clacton will yet again head to the polls to pick between the Reform UK leader and County Binface. Some locals accused Farage's move as being a "waste of money" while complaining the hundreds and thousands it could cost for a by-election could be better spent on the area. Farage chose to stand down ahead of the conclusion into a £5 million gift he received from Thai-based billionaire and crypto investor Christopher Harborne. Fresh allegations have emerged that he did not declare benefits from convicted fraudster George Cottrell. Clacton-based bus driver Lee Sommerville, 52, slammed the alleged intentions behind Farage's massive gamble. Speaking to the Mirror, he said: "It's to delay the investigation, point blank. So, there must be obviously some truth behind what has been claimed." Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats, Greens and Restore have all said they will not run candidates in this election. Farage's only true challenger is comedian Jonathan David Harvey, also known as Count Binface. Key Events Count Binface is set to launch his campaign for the Clacton by-election later today. A by-election in the Clacton constituency has been formally triggered, after Nigel Farage resigned his seat in the Commons. Mr Farage, the Reform UK leader, has said he will try to win back a spot on the green benches. Lee Anderson, Reform’s chairman, moved the writ. “I beg to move that Mr Speaker do issue his warrant to the Clerk of the Crown to make out a new writ for the electing of a member to serve in this present Parliament for the county constituency of Clacton in the room of Nigel Paul Farage, who since his election for the said county constituency has been appointed to the office of Steward and Bailiff of His Majesty’s Manor of Northstead in the county of York,” he said. The Peter Mandelson appointment as US ambassador was an “unmitigated disaster” that damaged Britain in the “eyes of the world ”, a damning report has found. A Foreign Affairs Committee investigation found it was “difficult to understand” how the disgraced peer was handed the plum Washington role, citing concerns about national security. Keir Starmer sacked him in September 2025 after fresh revelations over his friendship with the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, but the scandal refused to go away and deeply damaged the soon-to-be former PM. The influential Westminster committee found the process was not followed, and are now calling for no public appointments to be announced or made without the appropriate security clearance first being granted. They argue when a Prime Minister wishes to make a specific appointment, they should always consult the Head of Diplomatic Service and the Foreign Secretary. The report also called for a new process of appointments, and for the diligence report to always be shared with the hiring department. READ MORE: Peter Mandelson appointment branded 'unmitigated disaster' for Britain A minister said the by-election in Makerfield after an MP stood down to make way for Andy Burnham was “completely and utterly different” to the vote in Clacton triggered by Nigel Farage’s resignation. It was put to Sir Chris Bryant that some might argue the move was similar to when a by-election was triggered in Makerfield. He told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “Completely and utterly different.” He added: “Josh Simons stood down in Makerfield because he believed the country needed a change of direction. “He wasn’t standing himself, it wasn’t some kind of gimmick to try and avoid scrutiny.” The main disability benefit is failing claimants and is “not fit for purpose”, a major report has warned. DWP minister Sir Stephen Timms’s review said the process claiming of personal independence payment (PIP) benefits is often “dehumanising”, “soul destroying”, and “degrading” to claimants. The Timms review, which draws on more than 38,000 responses, said PIP, the main disability benefit, was introduced in 2013 to help towards the extra costs of disability and support independent living. But it said it has never been fully reviewed despite shifting trends in health and disability. The findings of the review come a year after Keir Starmer was forced to abandon plans to slash £5billion from sickness and disability benefits following a major Labour rebellion. The U-turn - leaving the welfare bill in tatters - was one of the one of the most destabilising moments during Mr Starmer’s premiership and left his authority weakened. READ MORE: 'Dehumanising' failures mean main disability benefit PIP is not working, major review finds A minister has said he probably would not vote in the by-election if he lived in Clacton. Sir Chris Bryant told Times Radio: “Look, if I lived there, I don't think I'd vote. The whole thing is a complete and utter nonsense. "I...It's a ludicrous attempt. He (Nigel Farage) had a hissy fit, basically, didn't he? And he's got very, very thin skin, has Nigel Farage. "And look, why are we in this mess? It's because Nigel Farage took £5 million, didn't declare it. There's a row about whether he should have declared it… "And this is the nub, because yesterday, Andrew Bailey, the governor of the Bank of England, confirmed what I think we sort of already knew, which was that Farage had been directly lobbying him about cryptocurrencies, trying to get the Bank of England, and they are, I would argue, are officials, lobbying them, using his position as an MP to lobby them on behalf of (Christopher) Harborne, the man who'd given him the £5 million. "Now, that is a much, much more serious offence." Nigel Farage’s attempt to fight a “people versus the establishment” by-election is in tatters after the main parties decided not to field candidates. The Reform UK leader said he would quit as an MP on Tuesday as he came under further scrutiny over his finances, saying that the voters in Clacton “should be the judges of my actions”. However after Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats, the Green Party and Rupert Lowe’s Restore Britain all said they will not stand candidates, Mr Farage's only confirmed challenger is the satirical candidate Count Binface. The Mirror takes a look at the man behind the bin, and what his vision is for Clacton. A Labour minister has had a savage dig at Nigel Farage, saying his Clacton by-election is a "face without any jokes in it". The contest is likely to be a head-to-head between the embattled Reform leader and parody candidate Count Binface after all other major parties refused to stand. Mr Farage faces an ongoing investigation by Parliament's standards commissioner over an undeclared £5m gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne. The probe is expected to resume if he returns as the constituency's MP. Trade minister Sir Chris Bryant said he suspected Mr Farage may have been given bad legal advice. And he likened him to Donald Trump, saying his antics are unlikely to impress voters. Nigel Farage is “trying to pretend he’s Donald Trump” but it “doesn’t wash with most ordinary members of the public,” a minister said. Asked why Labour would not stand a candidate in the Clacton by-election triggered by Mr Farage, Sir Chris Bryant said the Reform UK leader had a “hissy fit” and “I just don’t think that we should play along with that game.” He told Sky News: “I know what Nigel Farage is trying to do. “He’s trying to pretend that he’s Donald Trump, and that they’re all out to get me in for me, in for me, all of that kind of stuff. “I just don’t think it washes with most ordinary members of the public.” Locals in Clacton have blasted Nigel Farage for "wasting money" on a by-election which could set back the taxpayer around £200,000. Few things can steer chat away from the weather during a heatwave in a UK seaside town but Mr Farage's antics has certainly turned up the heat in his Essex constituency. Mr Farage has been an MP for just over two years but the people of Clacton could soon hit the polls again to pick between the leader of Reform UK and Count Binface - a comedian who has been the only person to announce they'll run against Farage. Some locals in Clacton accused Farage's move as being a "waste of money" while complaining the hundreds of thousands it could cost for a by-election could be better spent on the area instead. With visitors hitting the pier with ice cream dripping down their hands and tucking into fish and chips and a drink on a hot July day, it could be easy to miss Clacton-on-Sea, and the rest of Farage's Essex constituency, have been pulled into an uncertain political tussle. READ MORE: 'I went to Clacton and discovered what residents really think about "Mini Trump" Nigel Farage'