Two join bid for Ukip top role

Suzanne Evans and Paul Nuttall have both announced they are standing to be leader of crisishit Ukip.

The pair promised to hold the government’s feet to the fire on Brexit if they are elected to the helm of the party.

But while Mr Nuttall struck a conciliatory tone and pitched himself as the “unity” candidate, Ms Evans used her bid to launch a scathing attack on the current leadership.

ShesaidUkipneeds to shed its “toxic” image and warned it risks bec o ming a Donald Trump-style party under the leadership of Nigel Farage and his allies.

She accused her leadership rival Raheem Kassam of being a “farright” candidate who will take Ukip in the wrong direction.

Ms Evans said: “Our future as a political party in Britain does not lie in

“We’ve taken stick in Ukip for our toxic image”

that far-right wing. I don’t see a groundswell of opinion in this country for more far-right wing policies.

“I don ’t see a groundswell of opinion for the right to bear arms in America.”

Ms Evans said she “absolutely” thought Mr Kassam, who has won the backing of party donor Arron Banks, will take Ukip in a far-right direction but “our members don’t want that”.

She said: “We’ve taken a lot of stick in Ukip because perhaps we have had a slightly more toxic image than we should have had.”

Throwing his hat in the ring, Mr Nuttall, Ukip North West MEP, said the party faced an “existential crisis” and could disappear unless it unified.

He said: “I want to stand on the platform of being the unity candidate. Ukip needs to come together.”