A suspended UKIP candidate is being investigated by Police after he appeared to make threatening and racist remarks about an opposition candidate.
Robert Blay, a prospective parliamentary candidate for UKIP in North East Hampshire, made the comments about Tory opponent Ranil Jayawardena. Mr Blay had said: ” I think he could be our first Asian MP. If he is I will personally put a bullet between his eyes.” The comments prompted his party to suspend him after the Daily Mirror released a video of the footage.
The comments were made on Saturday in Ramsgate to investigators from the paper.
A police spokesman said they were aware of the footage and were reviewing the evidence as part of “initial inquires” but stressed that no arrests had been made.
He said: “The information available is being reviewed by Hampshire Constabulary.
“Police are in contact with the candidate affected by these comments as part of initial inquiries.”
It has led to UKIP’s deputy chairman Suzanne Evans saying she will seek to strengthening the party’s vetting process.
However in a statement realised earlier UKIP were keen to point out that this was not a problem that only affected their party. The statement said all parties had found within the last few months that the “vetting systems are not perfect.”
The spokesperson said: ” We are deeply concerned that Mr Blay had a long career in the Conservative Party – which goes to prove that issues with candidates such as these are not limited to UKIP.”
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