Reform UK suspends aspiring MP over anti-Muslim remarks and calls for concentration camps

Reform UK suspends aspiring MP over anti-Muslim remarks and calls for concentration camps
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Reform UK has suspended Jason Powell, an aspiring parliamentary candidate, after an ITV undercover investigation recorded him advocating concentration camps for migrants crossing the English Channel and claiming that “you cannot be Muslim and British”.

The year-long investigation, filmed partly at an event organised to thank supporters of Nigel Farage, has raised fresh questions about the party’s candidate-vetting procedures. Powell said his views reflected those of British people generally and denied that they were extremist.

The Muslim Council of Britain criticised Reform’s handling of such cases, arguing that suspensions alone were insufficient to address what it described as a culture of hatred within the party. Farage defended the vetting process, saying candidates could not be screened for comments they made in the future. Reform said it had strengthened its vetting procedures but acknowledged that individuals who did not share its values could still pass the initial checks.