STEPHEN Flynn has claimed that no one has contributed more to the cost of living crisis than Reform UK leader and “Brexit’s biggest champion” Nigel Farage.
The SNP Westminster Leader said that Farage, who was the previous leader of UKIP and the Brexit Party, was the “key architect” of Brexit, which “dragged Scotland out of the EU against its will” in 2016.
Flynn claimed that no one is more responsible for the cost-of-living crisis, which independent analysis has previously shown that Brexit was among the leading causes, than Farage.
Economists and analysts at Cambridge Econometrics reported at the start of 2024 that Brexit has already cost the UK economy around £140 billion – making the average person £2000 worse off.
Flynn has called on Farage to apologise to Scots ahead of his visit to Scotland on Monday, claiming that the Reform leader is the cause of the cost-of-living crisis and not the solution.
He said: “People feel that the economy isn’t working for them right now, and it’s no wonder given the mess the UK is in – but nobody has contributed to that mess more than Nigel Farage.
“For decades, Farage was Brexit’s biggest champion, and we all know it has made us poorer. All the data and research backs this up – and people across Scotland feel it every time they go to the shops or pay their bills.”
Farage was an integral part of the campaign to leave the EU and claimed that the UK spent an alleged £350 million on EU membership which would be freed up for the NHS.
However, just hours after the Brexit vote in 2016, Farage backpedaled his claim, which had been repeatedly criticised as inaccurate by the UK Statistics Authority.
Prominent economists have cited Brexit as one of the main reasons for soaring bills and rising food costs, with the Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) stating in October last year that the UK's status outside the single market is costing the UK economy billions of pounds every year.
Flynn added: “Farage is the cause of the cost of living crisis, not the solution.
"He should have apologised to the people of Scotland long ago for the damage inflicted by Brexit – and he should take the opportunity to apologise when he makes his day trip to Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse tomorrow.
“Compare Farage’s record of decimating living standards to the SNP’s record of delivery: cutting living costs through free prescriptions, restored Winter Fuel Payments, and scrapping Peak Rail Fares.
“Only the SNP are supporting people through the cost of living crisis and only the SNP are standing up to Farage and his brand of politics.”
Analysis by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) published in January found that Brexit had “permanently diminished trade efficiency in the UK by introducing customs checks, rules of origin requirements, and regulatory divergence from the EU.”
It said: “These barriers increase costs for both exporters and importers.”
Ahead of Farage’s visit to Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse, the SNP’s candidate for the by-election in the constituency, Katy Loudon, said people in the area already know the damage the Reform leader has caused to the UK.
She said: “Nigel Farage has done more than most to harm Scotland’s economy and send costs soaring for Scottish households.
“People across this constituency know the damage he has caused because they feel it every day in higher prices, but the once architect of Brexit is now portraying himself as the answer to the challenges facing people across Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse.
“Farage’s rhetoric isn’t what improves lives, delivery does; and that’s what the SNP is doing in government.”
Reform UK have been approached for comment.
