A prominent Reform figure was caught up in an email chain comparing immigrants to birds that “go everywhere”, revealing messages circulated 17 years ago and now shared with New statesman.
A circular email sent to the North East mailing list of Nigel Farage’s former party, Ukip, on April 23, 2009 by Gordon Parkin, included an anonymously written “move it” message comparing immigrants to “bad” birds in a birdbath “screaming and screaming” that “snapped”. Parkin later became assistant manager for the North East region for the Farage-founded Brexit Party, but was sacked in 2019 for racist comments. (Farage, who was Ukip leader at the time the circular email was sent, was not included as a recipient.)
While Parkin doesn’t appear to be the author of the lines — oddly rendered in a light comic font — the chain email included an approving preface to the analogy: “I’ve never heard it put like that before, but it’s a great analogy.” It is unclear who wrote this preface; THE New statesman has made inquiries with the Park, but so far has not received any response.
The message also included a complaint that people “waving flags different from our flag are yelling and screaming in the street (sic)”, as well as complaining that “Corn Flakes now comes in a bilingual box” and “I have to ‘press one’ to hear my bank speak to me in English”.
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The 20-odd recipients of this roundup included an email address for Gawain Towler, a reform board member who was the party’s communications director from 2019 to 2024 and remains an influential figure on the Faragist right.
There is no evidence that any of the recipients responded, approved, or sent it afterward (or even that they opened the email at all).
Here it is:
Images: Source New Statesman
Also among the recipients was Dave Pascoe, who was press officer for Ukip’s Hartlepool branch and a Ukip council candidate. He was in office when Ukip was still a Farage vehicle.
While Farage was not part of this email chain, Hartlepool – a town in the north-east of England – and the wider north-east have long been at the center of his political projects (Ukip, the Brexit campaign, the Brexit Party and UK Reform). Richard Tice, deputy leader of Reform, stood as the Brexit Party candidate in the 2019 Hartlepool by-election.
That this trend of conversation appears to have been acceptable in a targeted centre, among prominent figures in both his former and current party, does little to rid Reform of the fruitcake image that Farage is trying so hard to shed.
Towler and Parkin were approached for comment (Pascoe died in 2016). Ukip responded by saying this was a matter for Reform, “as these comments reflect Ukip under their administration and not today’s new Christian-focused Ukip”.
A spokesman for Reform said: “This is desperate. The man who sent the email in 2009 has no connection with Reform UK and never has.
“The New statesman they are really scraping the barrel.”
(Further reading: Exclusive: Greens to ditch ‘normal’ childbearing policy)
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