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Nigel Farage spoke to the biggest Reform UK rally so far in Scotland, but declined to speak with local journalists following the event. In his place, newly defected member of the House of Lords the former Conservative donor was left to field questions on claims of discriminatory behaviour and anti-Jewish sentiment linked to Farage.

Welcoming a New Recruit

Farage introduced the former Conservative peer and wealthy businessman at a sold-out rally of roughly seven hundred attendees in a hotel venue in central Scotland. Offord, who served as a Scotland Office minister under the last government and most recently served as treasurer of the Scottish Conservatives, announced his intention to relinquish his seat in the Lords in order to stand for Reform UK in next May’s Holyrood elections.

The leader stated he was “delighted” to welcome Offord to the party. He described the switch as “a brave and historic act”.

Avoiding Media Scrutiny

Farage addressed the rally following a difficult period which saw him launch a tirade against the BBC after they quizzed him regarding a report into alleged racist and remarks from his teenage years. However, Farage dodged the expected press huddle after Saturday’s event.

Questioned why Farage did not make himself available to address growing claims about his past behaviour, Offord said: “You’ll need to ask him that question.”

Pressed on whether he believed an apology was necessary for the comments he is said to have made about Jewish students, he stated: “That is a matter for him to deliberate on with his team.”

Insisting on Fitness

The peer maintained that the leader is “morally fit” to be the country's leader and rejected claims of coded political messaging. While addressing supporters, Farage had doubled down on his remarks about pupils in Glasgow who are not native English speakers by asking the rally: “Who voted for the wholesale change of the population of Glasgow?”

While Scotland's First Minister condemned the initial comments as “racist”, and Keir Starmer labeled them “toxic and divisive”, the defector argued that his new leader was “drawing attention to a real concern” that people are talking about on the doorstep”.

Growing Confidence

The rally, attended by an energetic and enthused crowd of largely male, white and middle-aged supporters who each paid £6 to attend, showcases Reform's increasing self-assurance ahead of the Scottish vote.

While the SNP continues to lead in the polls, the party has gained significant ground in the past year, achieving a quarter of the vote in a recent parliamentary by-election. After the collapse in support for Scottish Labour, Reform has regularly pushed it into third place lately, polling up to 22%.

Announcing that Reform UK membership in Scotland had increased fourfold over the last twelve months to a running total of 12,000, a senior party official stated his belief it could gain up to 20 MSPs in May, which would place Reform in “a powerful situation” in the Scottish Parliament.

Fighting Talk

A Reform councillor, one of Reform’s 19 Scottish councillors, elicited loud cheers as he described Farage as “Britain’s next prime minister”. He told supporters to “prepare for a fight” as we take on the political establishment”, warning that “the next five months will be tough”.

Despite not yet publishing a distinct policy platform for Scotland, representatives pledged Reform would “take on the green blob and the net-zero grifters”.

Farage himself underlined his delight at the party’s emergence as a force in Scottish politics over the past 12 months, confessing to supporters that in previous years he had been warned he “couldn't fill a small venue”.

Local Context

Meanwhile, not far away in Falkirk town centre, demonstrators with opposing views assembled for what have become regular weekly confrontations outside a local hotel used to accommodate asylum seekers.

A group coordinating protests said it was galvanised by a serious local crime. Speaking previously, Scotland's leader cautioned that the tactic of the far-right is to assign responsibility … to new arrivals and I think that is the root of the poison”.

He also made a clear distinction between those who hold far-right views and people with “legitimate points” about pressure on local services or neighbourhood security.