Good start, but Farage must now go all the way

NIGEL Farage’s decision not to contest any of the 317 seats won by the Tories in 2017 suggests he’s finally starting to listen.

On Saturday we invited readers to write to all Brexit Party candidates, urging them to stand down, so as not to split the Tory vote.

And you responded in your thousands, keenly aware that the only hope of ever leaving the EU – and, crucially, keeping Jeremy Corbyn out – lies in a convincing Boris Johnson victory. Yesterday’s announcement shows Mr Farage heard your plea.

In putting pragmatism ahead of purity, he proved himself capable of acting like a mature politician – rather than the quixotic leader of a fringe pressure group.

Well, up to a point. Welcome as it is, this gesture alone is nowhere near enough.

It’s a half-baked compromise which still leaves Brexit hanging by a thread – and the grim spectre of a Corbyn-led government looming as large as ever.

To secure the majority they need, the Tories must do far more than hold on to seats they already have. They have to win dozens of marginals, mainly from Labour.

In these constituencies every vote counts. And every vote for the Brexit Party decreases the chance of a Tory MP being elected.

So as we said on Saturday, the very real danger is: Vote Farage, get Corbyn.

Mr Farage is a man who has campaigned passionately throughout his career to get Britain out of the EU.

He now acknowledges that Mr Johnson’s withdrawal deal is the only realistic chance of achieving that.

So why on earth is he prepared to risk everything he’s ever worked for out of a misplaced sense of pride?

If he really believes a Conservative victory is best for Britain – which it plainly is – he must do all in his power to make it happen.

That means withdrawing candidates from ALL seats where the Tories have a genuine chance of winning.

True, some voters would be denied the chance to vote for his party but, like him, they should look to the greater good.

Yesterday’s announcement represented a tentative first step on the road to Brexit salvation. Mr Farage and his supporters must now go all the way.