Feeney was filmed referring to Asian homeowners as "parasites"
Reform UK is facing mounting backlash after an undercover investigation revealed councillors and candidates using racist and sexist language, prompting three councillors to reportedly quit the party.
The party has launched an investigation into the comments, which were captured during an undercover ITV operation and have since been widely shared on social media.
The investigation features comments from three councillors on Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council in England: Alan Feeney, Chris Whelan and Jamie Campbell.
In one excerpt, black children were referred to as “animals”, while another Reform member described an area as “infested” with Asian families.
Feeney was filmed referring to Asian homeowners as “parasites” and stating that “no more than 1% of [the] British population can be non-white”.
In another clip, Campbell discussed plans to build a mosque in the local area and suggested a way to prevent it from going ahead:
“There’s got to be a way of stopping that, like go and buy some pork chops. We’ll bury it in the ground.”
Feeney responded: “I was going to say, ‘unfortunately this is a pig cemetery mate’.”
The pair then went on to discuss a female colleague standing as a Reform candidate, with Whelan making a sexually explicit remark about her:
“Phwoar. F**k me, if she was my daughter it would still be bath night on a Thursday.”
Following the comments, Feeney remarked: “Oh god, we’re all going to end up in the papers.”
Feeney and Whelan are understood to have left Reform UK, while Campbell reportedly remains in post.
The investigation has prompted criticism from opposition parties, with Labour Party chairwoman Bridget Phillipson describing the comments as examples of “extreme racism” that could not be dismissed as “a few bad apples”.
She said: “The extreme racism and appalling behaviour exposed by this investigation is truly sickening.
“Nigel Farage can’t shrug these latest revelations off as being a few bad apples.
“Every Reform councillor, council candidate or party member found to have made such despicable comments must be thrown out of Reform UK immediately.
“Nigel Farage needs to explain why this keeps happening in his party and why he is failing to deal with blatant racism among those who stand for public office with his backing.
“It’s clear that Farage and his party are determined to poison our politics and threaten the shared British values Labour will always proudly defend.”
Warning: Distressing and graphic language
An undercover investigation by ITV Exposure into Nigel Farage’s Reform UK has found multiple elected councillors and party candidates expressing racist views and using offensive language.
ITV has obtained secretly recorded footage showing Reform officials from across England and Wales using violent, racist and sexist language.
Councillors Alan Feeney, Chris Whelan and Jamie Campbell did not reply to our request for comment. Councillors Feeney and Whelan have since resigned from Reform UK.
In a statement shared with ITV News, Reform UK said: “Where members, activists and councillors have clearly behaved inappropriately, investigations have commenced. In some cases, there have been suspensions and due process must be followed.”
“Reform UK has improved and prioritised its vetting procedures, but from time to time, a handful of individuals who do not share our values will initially make it through vetting. This is the same for all organisations.”
— ITV News (@itvnews) October 14, 2026
Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey described ITV’s report as “chilling”.
He said: “I feel for anyone watching this tonight who is frightened to see such racism and hatred festering in their community.
“It’s the very worst of what we’re seeing in Trump’s America. We can’t let it become Farage’s Britain.”
In response to the investigation, a Reform UK spokesman said the party had strengthened its vetting procedures but acknowledged that some individuals had passed through its checks despite not sharing its values.
The spokesman said the party had “improved and prioritised its vetting procedures, but from time to time a handful of individuals who do not share our values” have made it through their checks.
However, the party also criticised ITV News and Hardcash Productions, the production company behind the investigation, accusing them of using “extreme methods of deception”.
A party spokesperson said: “They have infiltrated our workplace, including commissioning an undercover journalist to provide altered identification documents, a false address, and false credentials so that they could be given access to Reform’s headquarters, computer systems, and spy on its employees.”
The controversy has also raised questions about the use of undercover journalism and the circumstances in which such methods can be justified.
Press regulator Ipso states that undercover reporting may be justified when it is in the public interest, such as when it exposes crime or serious wrongdoing, and when the evidence cannot be obtained by other means.
