Nigel Farage joined by Le Pen's right-wing ally as Reform leader vows to return small boats to France
The impromptu appearance comes hours after Mr Farage found himself at the centre of a donations storm following a sting by undercover journalists
Nigel Farage has been joined on stage by French right-wing politician and Le Pen protégé Jordan Bardella, as Reform UK vowed to return migrants arriving on small boats back to France.
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The Reform UK leader made an impromptu appearance on stage during the party's conference on Friday to unveil the "memorandum of understanding" between Reform UK and Bardella's party, National Rally, if they come to power.
Farage pledged to stop the boats "forever" during his appearance, with the pair agreeing to do "everything its power" to stop migrants crossing the Channel.
Talking to the crowd, Bardella and Farage promised to return illegal migrants entering France to their "countries of origin".
It comes just hours after Nigel Farage's future was thrown into jeopardy after an undercover investigation aired on Channel 4 appeared to show senior Reform UK members accepting overseas donations for three polls commissioned earlier this year.
Mr Farage told LBC that Reform has done “nothing wrong” after two party officials were caught accepting foreign donations in an undercover sting.
Read more: Two senior Reform UK officials step down after undercover sting over foreign donations
The move comes after Reform UK Shadow Home Secretary, Zia Yusuf, pledged that a Reform UK government would stop the boats within 100 days if coming to power
Farage was seen to insist that “nothing illegal” had taken place, despite the meetings being caught on camera and rival parties, including the Lib Dems, reporting Reform to the police over the claims.
“If the French people regain the power in 2027 in a few months with the Rally National and Marine Le Pen, our government will do everything in its power to ensure that France is no longer the gateway for illegal migration into the United Kingdom,“ Bardella said as he joined Farage on stage.
"The English Channel must no longer be a migration route to Folkestone or Dover, where thousands of people risk their lives in the hands of criminal smuggling gangs with the complicity of the leftists," Bardella continued.
According to the document that was presented on a large easel, the draft agreement described a "bilateral border protection agreements, on a jointly defined basis".
Earlier in the day, two of Reform UK's top officials who were caught up in the undercover sting were seen to step down from their roles in the party.
The conference also saw Farage insist he was "annoyed” that undercover reporters were able to meet with him as part of the sting.
The Reform UK leader was seen to indicate that the body of the first president of France, Napoleon III, could be repatriated to France if he becomes prime minister.
Napoleon III, who was president between 1848 and 1852 and then emperor until 1870, was exiled in the United Kingdom after defeat in the Franco-Prussian war, with his body now resting in St Michael’s Abbey in Farnborough.
Declaring that too many people in Britain and France no longer recognise their own cities, Jordan Bardella has said.
Senior aide to Nigel Farage Dan Jukes and Reform's Head of Policy, James Orr have both left their roles, the party confirmed this morning. Reform denies any wrongdoing.
Farage's on-stage appearance comes ahead of a session that will see him take questions from the media - an event that will likely be dominated by questions linked to the donations accusations levelled against both him and his party.
A Reform UK spokesman said: "Reform UK has launched an investigation following the broadcast of a Channel 4 News programme.
"Both individuals involved have stepped down from their respective positions pending the outcome of the investigation.
"The party believes it is important that the investigation is allowed to proceed independently and without prejudice. No further comment will be made while the investigation is ongoing."