The chancellor, Sajid Javid, has failed to rule out a Conservative alliance with Nigel Farage’s Brexit party at a general election.
Speaking to the BBC earlier, he emphasised that the Conservatives did not need an electoral alliance. However, he also did not categorically deny that they might need to work with Nigel Farage, whose Brexit Party took close to half of the UK’s seats at the European elections in May.
“We don’t need an electoral alliance with anyone. We can stand on our own two feet,” he said. However, when pushed thrice during his interview on BBC One’s The Andrew Marr Show, he failed to rule out a specific deal being struck. Farage has said he is prepared not to stand candidates in Tory areas where he could end up splitting leave voters and told the Tories they will not win an election without his support.
The Conservatives currently have no majority in the Commons and there are concerns they may struggle to win a snap election despite polling showing a lareg lead over Labour.
“We’re not in an election yet. When we get there I’m clear we don’t need an alliance with anyone. I think our message will resonate across the country,” said Javid.
