NIGEL Farage had a milkshake thrown in his face as he launched his election campaign bid.
He drew massive crowds as he officially launched his eighth bid for a Westminster seat in the Brexit stronghold of Clacton, Essex on Tuesday.
NEW: Nigel Farage had what appeared to be a milkshake poured over him as he left Clacton Wetherspoons pic.twitter.com/sCMfdubMIs
— Harry Horton (@harry_horton) June 4, 2024
Reports initially suggested he had been hit with a pint as he was leaving a local Wetherspoons but Reform UK confirmed to The National he was splashed with a milkshake.
Police have made two arrests in connection with the incident.
Speaking in Clacton on Tuesday, Farage said he wanted to effectively “take over” the Conservatives by replacing them with Reform.
It comes after a major poll on Monday predicted that the Tories were on course for a drubbing and could fall to as few as 140 MPs.
Farage said the Conservatives were “finished, they are done” because of their handling of Brexit which he claimed had “betrayed” the trust of Leave voters, adding: “They’ve opened up the borders to mass immigration like we’ve never seen before.”
He said: “That breach of trust from the Conservatives means they are finished, they are done.
“We are going to get a Labour government. Whether you like it or not, we are going to get a Labour government – the question is, who is going to be the voice of opposition?”
He urged voters to “send me to Parliament to be a bloody nuisance”, adding: “A Labour government won’t make any real changes at all, we need radical surgery in this country.”
A man was arrested in Newcastle in 2019 after throwing a banana and salted caramel milkshake from Five Guys over Farage while on the campaign trail.
Paul Crowther was ordered to pay £350 to Farage for dousing the then Brexit Party leader.
And later that year, Burger King was was admonished by the advertising standards watchdog for a tweet saying: “Dear people of Scotland. We're selling milkshakes all weekend. Have fun.”
McDonalds also briefly stopped selling milkshakes in an Edinburgh branch ahead of a visit to the city by Farage.
A Reform UK spokesperson was on Tuesday unable to say what flavour of milkshake Farage had been hit with but images from the scene showed it was purchased at McDonalds.
An Essex Police spokesperson said: "Officers have made two arrests after responding to a report a drink was thrown at a man in Clacton.
"We were called to the area of Marine Parade East, Clacton, at around 2.10pm today. It was reported a man had a drink thrown over him as he left a premises in the area. A 25-year-old woman, from Clacton, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of assault.
"While officers were responding and making this arrest, a second individual, a man, was arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker. Both individuals remain in custody for questioning."
