'Hordes of Tory lobby fodder' threaten Brexit, warns UKIP's Paul Nuttall

A big Conservative majority at the General Election would allow Theresa May to backslide on Brexit, the UKIP leader has warned.

Paul Nuttall claimed the Prime Minister was already backtracking on immigration promises and had refused to rule out paying a large EU divorce bill.

Speaking at the party's campaign launch in central London, Mr Nuttall said Brexit was a job "half done" and declared "we are only halfway through the war".

He added: "We have a great opportunity in this election because it is an election on UKIP's turf. It is a Brexit election."

He accused the PM of "flagrant opportunism" in calling the snap poll.

Mr Nuttall said: "We also believe that a whopping Conservative majority will only serve to put Brexit in peril.

"Hordes of Tory lobby fodder will allow the Prime Minister to backslide safe in the knowledge that she has the votes banked.

"We are not convinced that the Prime Minister, who campaigned to Remain in the referendum, will get the deal the British people want."

The launch was briefly disrupted by protesters, who UKIP sources said gained access to the venue by posing as journalists.

After "shouting a lot", the demonstrators were removed before the event started, the source said.

Stand Up To Racism demonstrator Simon Jones said the group had protested against the launch because "UKIP stand for racism, bigotry and homophobia", while fellow protester Weyman Bennett accused the party of being "anti-Muslim".

Mr Nuttall also told the launch that his party was prepared to stand aside in dozens of constituencies to help Brexit-backing MPs hold on to their seats.

He said UKIP will be more focused than in 2015, targeting key seats rather than pushing to increase its overall share of the vote.

But he declined to reveal which seat he would be contesting on 8 June, only telling Sky's Political Correspondent Darren McCaffrey that he should "pack a bucket and spade".

Mr Nuttall will announce where will be standing on Saturday, amid speculation it could be either Boston and Skegness or Hartlepool - both strongly pro-Brexit areas.

Mr Nuttall said the party's "bold and radical" manifesto would include pledges to:

:: Fight for the "kind of Brexit people voted for" - regaining control of borders, freedom to strike trade deals and a refusal to shell out for any EU divorce bill

:: Cut the foreign aid budget and put the proceeds into the NHS, which would remain in public hands and free at the point of delivery

:: Establish an English Parliament, abolish the House of Lords and scrap the first-past-the-post voting system used in General Elections

:: Tackle the "repulsive" practice of female genital mutilation and insist people must not cover their faces in public - a ban which will include Muslim women wearing the burka.

He also confirmed former leader Nigel Farage will play a major role in the campaign, saying: "Nigel will play a front-of-house role in this election, you will be seeing him on TV, you will be hearing his dulcet tones on the radio, he will be at the forefront of the campaign."

A bullish Mr Nuttall said reports of the death of UKIP have been greatly exaggerated.

"Anyone hoping that UKIP is going to fade away from the political scene is going to be bitterly disappointed over the next few weeks and, I predict, confounded over the next few years," he said.