Nigel Farage axes face-to-face meetings with constituents as Reform leader saying he is scared locals in his  Clacton seat will turn up armed with knives - and suggests they use Zoom instead

Nigel Farage says he will not hold tradition face-to-face MP surgeries with his Clacton constituents over fears the locals will turn up armed with knives.

The Reform UK leader said today he had been advised not to hold regular old-style physical meetings to address locals problems in case they flow through the door carrying blades in their pockets.

The politician has repeatedly been accused of not prioritising his Commons role, coming under fire for spending time in the US endorsing Donald Trumps presidential campaign following the July 4 election.

During a phone-in on LBC, the MP was asked whether he had an office in his Essex constituency – and how many surgeries he had held there since being elected more than two months ago.

The surgeries are a chance for voters to meet their MP and bring forward any local issues and concerns they would like help with.  

Do I have an office in Clacton? Yes. Am I allowing the public to flow through the door with their knives in their pockets? No, no Im not, Mr Farage replied.

Asked why would the people of Clacton want to flow through the door with knives in their pockets, he said: Well they did in Southend. They murdered David Amess, and he was a far less controversial figure than me.

The Reform UK leader said today he had been advised not to hold regular old-style physical meetings to address locals problems in case they flow through the door with knives in their pockets.

During a phone-in on LBC, the MP was asked whether he had an office in his Essex constituency – and how many surgeries he had held there since being elected more than two months ago.

Asked why would the people of Clacton want to flow through the door with knives in their pockets, he said: Well they did in Southend. They murdered David Amess, and he was a far less controversial figure than me. Conservative politician Sir David was fatally stabbed during a surgery in his Southend constituency in 2021 by an Islamic State-supporting terrorist.

Conservative politician Sir David was fatally stabbed during a surgery in his Southend constituency in 2021 by an Islamic State-supporting terrorist.

Asked whether he was hosting physical surgeries in Clacton, Mr Farage told LBC not yet, but that he would when Parliament allows me.

On whether he had been advised for his own security not to hold surgeries, he replied: I would have thought that would make sense, wouldnt you?

He said the guidance had been given by the Speakers (Sir Lindsay Hoyles) office, and beneath the Speakers Office there is a security team who give advice and say you should do some things and not do others.

So were not in a fit state to do the old-style surgeries, but do you know what, if youve got something to say to me as a Clacton resident, Zoom is not the end of the world, Mr Farage added.

Last month it was revealed Mr Farage is the UKs  highest-paid MP after his register of interests revealed he makes almost £1.2million a year from appearing on GB News.

The register shows he is paid £97,928.40 a month for 32 hours of work presenting his show, which airs Monday to Thursday.

Following his success in Clacton - which came after he consistently denied he was planning on running, or taking up the helm as the leader of Reform UK - he returned to the channel as a presenter. 

He also made £16,597.22 from hiring himself out for personalised videos on Cameo - where he has been duped into saying rude names and using pro-Irish Republican slogans by pranksters - and earns £4,000 a month writing for the Daily Telegraph.

The register also shows he was paid £11,783.55 by the AZ Liberty Network, an American conservative civic engagement group, for a speaking engagement.