Nigel Farage in meltdown over Hope not Hate as he files a second complaint in under a month

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is so incenced at the work of anti-extremist campaign group Hope not Hate, that he has filed a second complaint against the organisation in under a month.

Hope not Hate has done outstanding work in holding Reform to account, exposing the party’s candidates for holding bigoted and hateful views while also campaigning against the politics of hate and division that they expose.

Farage of course, would rather such crucial work not happen.

He filed a complaint against the organisation earlier this month, claiming in a letter to the Charity Commission that Hope Unlimited Charitable Trust (HUCT) was funding private company Hope Not Hate Limited’s “political activities”.

Under UK charity law, a charitable trust can fund political activities, but only if the activity is directly intended to support its charitable purpose and does not cross into party politics.

Farage has tried to claim that Hope not Hate is funded entirely by grants from HUCT, and accused Hope not Hate of sending leaflets to Makerfield homes endorsing Labour candidate Andy Burnham at next month’s by-election and rejecting his party Reform UK.

That complaint has been rejected this week, with the Charity Commission finding that there was no case to answer.

Now Farage has filed a second complaint, this time to the Electoral Commission, claiming that Hope not Hate breached the spending cap in the Makerfield by-election imposed on local non-party campaigners of £700 without having to register with one of the candidate campaigns.

He claims Hope not Hate racked up thousands of pounds in spend in the month leading up to the by-election on Facebook alone.

Responding to his latest meltdown and complaint, Hope not Hate said its campaigning in Makerfield was ‘carefully tracked so as to remain within relevant electoral law spending limits’.

It added: “What Nigel Farage is really objecting to is the work Hope not Hate has done since the last General Election: exposing countless Reform candidates with records of racism, misogyny and extreme views, and ensuring voters understand who Reform is asking them to elect.”

“We are a thorn in Reform’s side because our work is effective. That is why this is the second complaint in such a short space of time. It will not be the last attempt to shut down legitimate scrutiny and it will not work.”