A Reform UK candidate has disowned the party and is backing the Conservatives amid a row over racism.

Liam Booth-Isherwood, who was standing in the seat of Erewash, announced he was dropping out of the race and would instead be endorsing the Tory contender Maggie Throup to “stop Labour”.

He said he had become “increasingly disillusioned” with the behaviour of the party and accused leader Nigel Farage of not taking it seriously.

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It follows the controversy over a Reform canvasser who was caught making a racial slur about the prime minister in an undercover investigation.

Reform UK has also had to drop several election candidates because of racist remarks they have made.

Mr Booth-Isherwood said in a statement: “I am today announcing my decision to leave the Reform Party and have suspended my campaign as the Reform candidate for Erewash with immediate effect.

“Over the past few weeks, I have been increasingly disillusioned with the behaviour and conduct of Reform.

“Whilst I have campaigned alongside many decent, honest and hardworking people during the course of the General Election campaign in Erewash, the reports of widespread racism and sexism in Reform have made clear that there is a significant moral issue within certain elements of the party, and the failure of the party’s leadership to not only take this matter seriously, but also to fundamentally address it, has made clear to me that this is no longer a party I want to be associated with.

“As a result, I am announcing my endorsement of the Conservative Party candidate, Maggie Throup, for Erewash. Only she can stop Labour.”

Mr Farage has faced criticism from across the political divide for failing to tackle accusations of racism within Reform, which have engulfed the party in recent days.

On Sunday he insisted the “bad apples are gone” from the party and denied “fanning the flames” of prejudice.

The row centres on an undercover investigation by Channel 4 last week which showed Reform activist Andrew Parker using the racial slur “P***” to describe the prime minister, describing Islam as a “disgusting cult”, and saying the army should “just shoot” migrants crossing the Channel.

Another canvasser described the Pride flag as “degenerate” and suggested members of the LGBT community are paedophiles.

Reform UK withdrew support on Saturday from three candidates over racist remarks, including one who allegedly said black people should “get off [their] lazy arses” and stop acting “like savages”.

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On Sunday Mr Farage defended his handling of the row, telling Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips: “Political parties attract all sorts of people. I always think politics brings out the best and the worst in people and I am not fanning the flames of anything. I want unity in this country.”

Pressed on why his party seems to attract people who hold extremist views, the former UKIP leader claimed it was because he had driven the British Nationalist Party (BNP) “out as an electoral force”.

“Ironically, destroying the BNP means people who are minded that way don’t any longer have a home to go to, and so some will gravitate in our direction,” he added.

He went on to say that “anybody who has a racist point of view, I don’t want to know”.

He added: “I want to live, Trevor, in a country that is literally colour-blind. I couldn’t care less what colour you are. I’m not interested in what sexuality you have. Let’s treat everybody equally. That is my agenda.”

‘Bad apples gone from Reform’

Speaking later, to a crowd of 5,000 supporters at his “biggest ever rally” this afternoon, Mr Farage repeated his claim Mr Parker is a “paid actor” and part of a “deliberate attempt to derail our campaign” – something C4 and Mr Parker has denied.

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In reference to the election betting scandal he added: “Have we had a few bad apples? We have, although to my knowledge nobody involved in an organised betting ring is standing for us.

“I have to say, the bad apples are gone. We’ll never have them back.”

The rally came after the prime minister bolstered his attack on Mr Farage, saying he had shown “no contrition or remorse”.

Rishi Sunak on Friday took the decision to repeat the slur made about him to “call out what it was”.

Asked how the Reform row was different to the case of Frank Hester, a Tory donor who allegedly made racist comments about Diane Abbott, he told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg: “The difference is that Nigel Farage has just described these comments [by Mr Parker] as inappropriate.

“They’re not inappropriate. They were vile and racist and wrong.

“The person who made them has only apologised to the Reform Party for the impact it’s had on them. It’s a very clear difference. There is no contrition or remorse and or acceptance of what’s happened in that case.”

Mr Hester, who has donated £15m to the Tory party, apologised for comments he made about Ms Abbott, but claimed they “had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin”.

Mr Sunak was criticised for the way he initially responded to the allegations about the major party donor, before eventually condemning the remarks as “racist”.

Claims of Russian interference in the general election campaign are “gravely concerning”, the deputy prime minister has said.

Mr Dowden told Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips that Moscow allegedly using Facebook pages to spread support for Nigel Farage “is a classic example from the Russian playbook”.

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The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) says it has been monitoring five co-ordinated Facebook pages which have been spouting Kremlin talking points, with some posting in support of Reform UK.

Mr Dowden told Sky News: “This is something that I’ve warned about for some time.

“There is a threat in all elections, and indeed we see it in this election, from hostile state actors seeking to influence the outcome of the election campaign.

“Russia is a prime example of this and this is a classic example from the Russian playbook.”

He added that this was a “low-level use of bots”.

Mr Dowden earlier told The Sunday Times: “These revelations reveal the real risk our democracy faces in this uncertain world.

“Malign foreign actors, promoting British political parties, policies and views that fit their agenda is just another example of the challenges in the increasingly volatile cyberspace of the 21st century and is gravely concerning to see during an election campaign.”

The newspaper reported that Conservative chairman Richard Holden has written to Simon Case, the cabinet secretary, and Sir Tim Barrow, the national security adviser, asking for the claims to be investigated.

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According to ABC, the pages appeared to have little in common but were linked through an examination of the location data attached to the pages’ administrators, the tracking of paid ads, and an analysis of the pages’ similar or shared content.

The network of pages has a combined 190,000 followers, each featuring criticism of several UK political parties, including the Conservatives and Labour, the ABC says.

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The broadcaster also reportedly found most of the administrators for each page are based in Nigeria, which is a significant connection as previous online Russian propaganda networks were found to have been operating from Africa.

The reports come after Mr Farage faced a backlash for saying he blames the West and NATO for the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Mr Farage called it “cobblers” to claim bots generated by foreign state actors could interfere with the election outcome – as he launched a personal attack on Mr Dowden.

Asked about the deputy PM’s comments, he told Trevor Phillips: “Oh, don’t talk cobblers.

“I mean you had this bland fellow on earlier who apparently is the deputy prime minister, who no one knows who he is, and there he is saying, ‘oh, there are Russian bots involved’.

“Hang on, did you ask him how many millions of pounds his party have taken from Russian sources over the course of the last few years?

“This is the Russia hoax.”

Mr Farage went on to describe Russian President Vladimir Putin as a “very, very dangerous” man.

“I abhor what he’s done in Ukraine. Totally and utterly,” he said.

“But I was far sighted. I saw this coming.”

Leaders and politicians of all parties are coming out swinging today as the general election campaign enters the final days.

Rishi Sunak is today saying that Labour would cause “irreversible damage within just 100 days of coming to power”, while his top lieutenants warn of the “danger” of a government led by Sir Keir Starmer.

With polls throughout the campaign showing the Conservative Party failing to make a dent in Labour’s 21-point lead, according to the Sky News Poll Tracker, the prime minister only has days to change minds across the country in his bid to retain power.

Meanwhile, the Labour leader is arguing that if the Conservatives are re-elected, “they will feel entitled to continue serving themselves, rather than putting the needs of our country first”.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey is continuing to promote his party’s proposals for the NHS, while SNP leader John Swinney is arguing that the Scottish public should “vote SNP to put Scotland’s interests first”.

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Sunak says Labour ‘cannot be trusted’

The Conservative Party is continuing its warning that a Labour government would see taxes rise, and the prime minister is arguing electing Sir Keir would do “irreversible damage within just 100 days of coming to power”.

Mr Sunak said that Labour’s plans to impose VAT on private school fees would risk “throwing thousands of families’ plans for the autumn term into chaos, with children wondering if they will have a desk at school to go back to”.

And he also claimed that Labour would make Britain the “soft touch migrant capital of the world” with “open borders” and an “illegal migrant amnesty”.

The prime minister added: “They cannot be trusted. We must not surrender our taxes, our borders and our security to them. Only the Conservatives will deliver tax cuts, a growing economy and a brighter, more secure future for everyone.”

Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron went further in an interview with The Sunday Times, suggesting that a Labour government would be a threat to national security.

He told the newspaper that Sir Keir “is in danger of weakening Britain’s position and weakening Britain’s defences, all in a way that’s completely unnecessary”.

The ex-prime minister described Labour as “hopelessly naive about the dangerous world in which we’re living”, adding: “The last thing we need in Britain now is another liberal leftie lawyer running the country.”

But Sir Keir hit back, noting that the government has already given him “high level sensitive briefings, so much do they trust us on national security”.

“To now turn around and make this ridiculous claim just shows how desperate they have become going into this election,” he added.

Starmer appeals for ‘clear mandate’ to govern

The Labour leader and the potential next chancellor, Rachel Reeves, also spoke to The Sunday Times, and they talked about their goal of getting housebuilding ramping up “on day one” if they win the election.

The newspaper reports that at least three housing announcements are expected to be made within the first fortnight of a Labour government, saying that opportunities for young people from working-class backgrounds to own their own home “don’t exist”.

And in an article for The Observer, Sir Keir wrote that if voters elect Labour on Thursday, “the work of change begins” and they will “get to work on repairing our public services with an immediate cash injection, alongside urgent reforms”.

He also attacked the Tories’ record in power, saying if they are re-elected, “Britain will remain stuck in their low-growth, high-tax, declining public services doom-loop”.

“The unfunded splurge contained in their manifesto will unleash chaos into our economy once again. And they will feel entitled to continue serving themselves, rather than putting the needs of our country first,” he added.

“Frankly, should they win another five years after everything they’ve put us through in this parliament, they would surely think they could get away with anything.”

He appealed for a “clear mandate” to implement his plans, pointing to “chaos” under Mr Sunak and Liz Truss before him as examples of what happens when prime ministers seek to “govern without that mandate”.

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SNP ‘offers hope of better future’

Meanwhile in Scotland, the leader of the SNP is appealing to Scots to back his party as polls show that Labour could become the largest Scottish parliamentary contingent in over a decade.

John Swinney argued that while “the result in England is now inevitable”, in “most seats in Scotland it’s too close to call between the SNP and Labour”.

He hit out at the Labour Party, saying a Starmer government “plans to impose £18bn of cuts to public spending – after years of austerity, Brexit and the ongoing cost of living crisis”.

To avoid that, he said, and to “ensure that decisions about Scotland are made in Scotland, then you’ve got to vote SNP”.

“The SNP offers Scotland the hope of a better future – but you have to vote for it. This Thursday, vote SNP to put Scotland’s interests first,” he added.

Tories have ‘failed’ to support families in grief

The Liberal Democrats are continuing to unveil policies, focused on the NHS and reversing “heartless Tory cuts” to bereavement payments.

On the latter as it stands, a bereaved family where a spouse or partner has died receives a lump sum of up to £3,500, followed by a monthly payment of up to £350 for 18 months.

The party is calling for this period to be extended, and is pledging to inject an additional £440m a year into the system by 2028-29 to fund it.

Sir Ed Davey said in a statement: “Rishi Sunak’s government has failed to ensure families are not left struggling to pay the bills at such a difficult period of time.

“The Liberal Democrats would treat families and children who lose a loved one with dignity and provide the support they deserve.”

He also reiterated his party’s pledge to give people a legal right to see a GP within a week and start cancer treatment within two months, with Sir Ed saying that his party has “put health and care at the heart of our fair deal for the country”.

Farage goes on the attack

Meanwhile, Reform UK is on the offensive after facing a slew of racism allegations over recent days.

The party yesterday withdrew support for three candidates, and it came on the heels of Channel 4 news airing footage filmed undercover that showed Andrew Parker, an activist canvassing for Mr Farage, using the racial slur “P***” to describe the prime minister, describing Islam as a “disgusting cult”, and saying the army should “just shoot” migrants crossing the Channel.

Nigel Farage has gone on the attack, with the party saying it has reported Channel 4 to the elections watchdog for alleged “scandalous… interference” over what the party claims was a fake rant planted by the broadcaster.

Mr Farage also hit out at the BBC, saying he would refuse to appear on their flagship Sunday morning show until they apologise for their “dishonest” audience during a BBC Question Time special on Friday, accusing the broadcaster of having “behaved like a political actor throughout this election”.

He will hold a vast rally in Birmingham later today, after speaking to Sky News from Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips at 8.30am.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage will be joining Sky News’ Trevor Philips from 8.30am this morning on his last programme before the election – along with Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden, Labour’s national campaign coordinator Pat McFadden, and SNP leader and Scottish First Minister John Swinney.