Nigel Farage accused of weaponising murder of Ann Widdecombe for ‘political propaganda’
Farage has been called out for speculating about Widdecombe's murder
Nigel Farage has come in for criticism for speculating about the murder of the formed Tory MP turned Reform spokesperson Ann Widdecombe, despite police urging people not to.
Widdecombe was found dead at her home on Thursday. Police believe she was attacked at her home shortly after midday the day before.
A 28-year-old man in South Yorkshire has been arrested on suspicion of murder.
As reported by The Times, the Reform leader told journalists over the weekend that he did not believe that Widdecombe’s killing was “a burglary gone wrong”.
Farage set out a timeline of events before her death, claiming that a car had been parked on her drive at around 12.30pm on Wednesday.
He then speculated: “If you were a burglar, would you literally drive your car on to someone’s drive? You wouldn’t. From what I can see of it, from what I can make out, this was premeditated murder.”
The Reform leader also questioned whether it was a “politically motivated” murder or carried out by “someone with a grudge”.
At a press conference yesterday, police said there is nothing to suggest it was “politically motivated”.
He said: “Whether it was politically motivated, whether it was somebody with a grudge, I don’t think it pays at this moment in time to speculate, but what I do think we can say and how extraordinary of course that David Amess [the murdered MP] was such a very, very close friend of Ann’s …
“What it does say is that people now in private life, especially politics, the world is very much more dangerous than it has ever been.”
Farage has repeatedly described himself as “the most physically and verbally attacked public figure or politician of modern times”.
On Friday, Devon and Cornwall police put out a statement requesting for people not to speculate about her death.
Matt Longman, assistant chief constable of Devon and Cornwall, said: “I would ask people not to speculate about what might have happened, particularly on social media.
“This is not only potentially harmful to our investigation but also deeply distressing for family and friends of Miss Widdecombe.”
Harvey Proctor, a former Tory MP and close friend of Widdecombe, said Farage’s public pronouncements were “deeply disappointing”.
Proctor told The Times: “Ann Widdecombe was far too dear to her family, friends and former colleagues for her murder to be exploited as political propaganda.”
“The police have expressly asked the public not to speculate about the motive. It is therefore deeply disappointing that Nigel Farage has chosen to do precisely that,” he added.
In a post on X, journalist Owen Jones commented: “It’s very obvious what Nigel Farage is doing with the murder of Ann Widdecombe.
“He wants to shut down scrutiny of himself and his fellow Reform politicians by claiming that holding any of them to account threatens their personal safety.”
Farage was also criticised for exploiting the murder of Henry Nowak, a Southampton university student. Vickrum Digwa, a 23-year-old British Sikh was found guilty of his murder.
The Reform leader was also condemned for exploiting the stabbings of three young girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport in July 2024, and helping to incite the ensuing far-right riots.
At the time, he questioned whether “the truth” about the knife attacker, Axel Rudakubana, was being “withheld”.
Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward
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