NOW BREXIT PARTY VOWS TO TARGET HOLYROOD

++ Farage election pledge after Euro vote earthquake ++ SNP plans new referendum in 2020 ++ Labour civil war after collapse

NIGEL Farage’s Brexit Party has vowed to muscle in on Scotland by winning seats at Holyrood.

The pledge follows the political earthquake it caused in the european Parliament election. It stormed to a remarkable victory by securing 29 seats across the UK – at the expense of Labour and the Conservatives, which both suffered massive losses.

A triumphant Mr Farage immediately demanded a role in the Brexit talks and pledged to put up candidates in every constituency at the next general election to ‘stun’ the mainstream parties.

North of the Border, his party took one of six european Parliament seats after securing the support of 14.8 per cent of Scots.

Buoyed by its success only weeks after being formed, the party plans a major push to secure more successes in the Scottish parliament election

in 2021. It believes it may be on course for up to eight Holyrood seats.

On a dramatic day of developments in Scotland following the results of the European Parliament election:

Nicola Sturgeon claimed a referendum on independence is likely in the second half of next year as other senior figures suggested the election results had boosted the case for breaking up Britain;

Ruth Davidson admitted the Conservatives had taken ‘a kicking’ because the public ‘takes a dim view of politicians who don’t keep their promises’;

Vicious in-fighting broke out in Scottish Labour after it slumped to a humiliating fifth place finish.

The Brexit Party won 31.6 per cent of the vote across the UK to secure 29 MEPs, with the Liberal Democrats winning 16 seats. This was followed by ten for Labour, seven for the Greens and only four for the Conservatives.

In Scotland, the SNP won three seats, while the Brexit Party, Lib Dems and Tories all picked up one each.

The Brexit Party was second only to the SNP in Scotland on vote share, at 14.8 per cent, compared to 37.7 per cent. Turnout was 39.9 per cent. The Lib Dems – who put the push for a so-called People’s Vote to stop Brexit at the heart of their campaign, took 13.8 per cent, followed by the Tories on 11.6 per cent and Labour on 9.3 per cent.

Despite soaring support across the UK, the Greens won only 8 per cent of the vote in Scotland – as in 2014 – meaning it failed to secure its first Scottish MEP.

The Brexit Party’s successes came in stark contrast to that of Change UK, which descended into public infighting yesterday after a disastrous performance.

The future of the pro-Remain party – formed by breakaway Tory and Labour MPs – was in doubt last night. It secured only 4 per cent of the vote and failed to win a single MEP.

Mr Farage savaged Tory leadership candidates includof ing frontrunner Boris Johnson – saying he was the only one who could deliver Brexit.

After the Tories slumped to fifth place across the UK, Mr Farage told a rally in central London that if Britain did not leave on October 31, it would be seen as the ‘second great betrayal’.

The European results would ‘put pressure on the Tories, and pressure on the many leadership candidates’, he said. ‘Are they going to respond? If we don’t leave on the October 31 then I believe we can produce a result in the next general election that will stun them.’

He added: ‘We’re going to interview and assess 650 candidates to fight the next general election.’

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘We have got men and women with considerable business experience.

‘We want to be part of that negotiating team. We want to take responsibility for what’s happened and we’re ready to do so. I hope the Government is listening.’

Louis Stedman-Bryce, the newly elected Brexit Party MEP for Scotland, said coming’ from nowhere’ to a second-placed finish in Scotland was a huge achievement. He added: ‘That is recognition that there is a massive amount people in Scotland that believe in leaving the European Union. These people have not had representation from the other parties.’

Asked where the party would go next, he said: ‘We are looking for getting representatives in Westminster and Holyrood. One of the recent polls suggested we could get eight MSPs.’

In his acceptance speech at Edinburgh City Chambers yesterday, Mr Stedman-Bryce said: ‘I would like to remind all of us here that actually back in 2016 we had a vote where over one million Scots voted to leave the EU and that was actually more people than voted for the SNP, so there is a strong voice out there for people that don’t agree with some of my colleagues on the stand, and the Brexit Party is here to demonstrate that.

‘Within five weeks, we have gone from the party of zero to running second in this election, so I think that sends a clear message that there are people in Scotland that do agree with Brexit and they now have a voice through the Brexit Party.’

Alyn Smith, who was reelected as Nationalist MEP, said he did not believe the Brexit Party deserves any credit: ‘They’ve been elected on a promise, they have no way to deliver it.’

On the Brexit Party’s rise in Scotland, he said: ‘I’ve seen Ukip come, I’ve seen Ukip go. I think Brexit will be exactly the same. Five weeks ago this organisation didn’t exist, it didn’t stand with a manifesto, it was put together by a slick PR company with a lot of dubious money behind it.

‘They will be under scrutiny now, let’s see who they are.’

Comment – Page 18

‘Second great betrayal’

‘They will be under scrutiny’