UKIP at 'tipping point' says biggest donor Arron Banks
The party's biggest financial backer says it needs to be "radical and pragmatic" and has hinted that he may drop his cash support.
Wednesday 22 February 2017 20:52, UK
UKIP's richest donor says the party is at a "tipping point" and has hinted he may pour his millions into another political movement if the party fails to be sufficiently radical.
Arron Banks told Sky News that after the EU referendum: "We've ended up with our particular campaign with nearly a million followers (and) we do have a way to get our message out and we have always liked the idea of a movement which coalesces some really radical ideas."
"I think Nigel (Farage) said that if UKIP is not radical it deserves to die. So we will see.
"Are we reaching a tipping point? Will they win Stoke? Will it be a narrow loss? Whatever happens, we have to be not left or right but radical. That's what I'll be pushing for.
"You have to be radical and pragmatic. If it's not working you look at a different approach."
In a wide-ranging interview Mr Banks also revealed he was taking legal action against the Atlantic Council think tank which suggested his political activities were part-funded by Moscow in order to help destabilise the West.
He has also started legal proceedings against two Conservative MPs who discussed the report.
Mr Banks, who helped fund the Brexit campaign, said: "There's no doubt that the Russians have been playing around the edges, but to say that our campaign was funded by the Russians when it was funded by myself, Peter Hargreaves and ordinary people is just ridiculous."
The diamond mine owner and insurance entrepreneur has also defended his remarks that he was "sick to death" of people talking about Hillsborough and supported UKIP's leader Paul Nuttall
He suggests his staff were to blame and blames Labour and a liberal media for seizing on the claims.
"I know Paul quite well. He is a technophobe and he probably - well I know for certain, he doesn't really use the internet - so from that point of view he probably wouldn't have been aware of these sort of things," Mr Banks said.