The political landscape in the United Kingdom was rocked this past weekend by a controversy that quickly escalated from a single MP’s remarks to a national debate about race, representation, and political leadership. At the center of the storm is Sarah Pochin, the Reform UK MP for Runcorn and Helsby, whose comments about diversity in television advertising have sparked outrage, condemnation, and a fierce defense from her party leader, Nigel Farage.
It all began on October 25, 2025, when Pochin appeared on a TV phone-in and shared her exasperation about what she described as an overrepresentation of Black and Asian people in television adverts. "It drives me mad when I see adverts full of black people, full of Asian people, you know people who are anything other than white," she said, adding that such adverts "don’t reflect our society" and that "your average white person, average white family is… not represented anymore." The remarks, broadcast on TalkTV, were met with immediate backlash from across the political spectrum, with many branding them as racist and out of touch with modern Britain.
The fallout was swift. By the following day, October 26, Pochin issued a public apology on social media, acknowledging that her comments were "phrased poorly" and insisting that her intention was not to offend. Instead, she claimed she was trying to critique what she called the advertising industry’s "DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) madness." In her words: "My comments were phrased poorly and I apologise for any offence caused, which was not my intention. The point I was trying to make is that the British advertising agency world has gone DEI mad and many adverts are now unrepresentative of British society as a whole. I will endeavour to ensure my language is more accurate going forward."
But the apology did little to quell the uproar. By Monday, October 27, the controversy had grown into a full-blown political crisis for Reform UK. Labour Party chairwoman Anna Turley wrote to Nigel Farage demanding he strip Pochin of the party whip, stating bluntly: "Saying that seeing black and Asian people in TV adverts 'drives me mad' is racist. You have the power to withdraw the Reform UK whip from Sarah Pochin. You should do it today." The Liberal Democrats also weighed in, tabling a censure motion in Parliament and urging MPs to rebuke Pochin’s "blatantly racist" remarks. Max Wilkinson, the party’s Home Affairs Spokesperson, declared: "Decent MPs from across party lines should now come together to condemn this disgraceful behaviour and show the public that this will never be tolerated by Parliament."
Prime Minister Keir Starmer, speaking during a visit to Turkey and later to British broadcasters, left no room for ambiguity. When asked if Pochin’s remarks were racist, he replied: "Yes, she was. It’s shocking racism and it’s the sort of thing that will tear our country apart, and it tells you everything about Reform. Nigel Farage has got some questions to answer, because either he doesn’t consider it racist, which in my view is shocking in itself, or he does think it’s racist and he’s shown absolutely no leadership. I’m the prime minister of the whole of our country, our reasonable, tolerant, diverse country, and I want to serve the whole country. He can’t even call out racism." Starmer further argued that action was needed: "He needs to take action, it’s not a question of just the whip, this is shocking racism, it has to be dealt with and it should be rooted out of his party. And the question for Nigel Farage is, why has he shown absolutely no leadership on this?"
Under mounting pressure, Nigel Farage finally broke his silence at a Westminster press conference on October 27. Facing a barrage of questions, he made his position clear: he was "unhappy" with Pochin’s remarks and found her words "ugly," but he stopped short of calling them racist. "The words that Sarah Pochin used in response to a caller into TalkRADIO on Saturday morning were ugly, and taken on their own, could be read to be very, very unpleasant indeed. I am unhappy with what she has done, I can’t underestimate that and she fully knows how I feel. However, it was in the broader context of DEI madness in the advertising industry, something which anybody with half a brain can recognise has been going on since about 2021. So I understand the basic point but the way she put it, the way she worded it, was wrong and was ugly and if I thought the intention behind it was racist I’d have taken more action than I have today, but that is because I don’t."
Farage’s refusal to use the word "racist" in relation to Pochin’s comments drew further criticism, with many arguing that his response fell short of what was needed. The Labour Party, Liberal Democrats, and a number of commentators accused him of lacking leadership and failing to uphold the standards expected of a major political figure. Yet Farage insisted that the "intention" behind the remarks mattered, and that while he condemned the language, he did not believe Pochin was motivated by racism. "If I thought the intention behind it was racist, which I don’t, I would have taken more action than I have done," he reiterated.
Amid the row, Pochin’s original comments continued to be dissected and debated. She had also said during the phone-in: "It might be fine inside the M25, but it’s definitely not representative of the rest of the country." In her apology, she doubled down on her critique of the advertising industry, asserting that "many adverts are now unrepresentative of British society as a whole." The phrase "DEI madness" became a lightning rod for both criticism and support, with some on social media echoing her concerns about representation and others denouncing her views as divisive and outdated.
The controversy comes at a sensitive time for Reform UK, which has sought to position itself as a voice for those disenchanted with what it calls "woke" politics and establishment parties. Pochin, who only narrowly won her seat in May by a margin of six votes, is the party’s sole MP in the Liverpool City Region. Her remarks and the subsequent fallout have put both her and the party under a microscope, raising questions about the boundaries of political discourse and the responsibilities of public figures in shaping the national conversation on race and identity.
As the debate raged, Farage attempted to shift the focus during his press conference by announcing plans for a parliamentary inquiry into grooming gangs, a topic he described as a "stain" on the country’s history. He was joined by Ellie Reynolds, a survivor who recently resigned from the government’s survivors panel, branding the official probe "corrupt." Farage argued that Parliament must "step up and do its job," offering what he called a "solution to the failing grooming gangs inquiry." But for many observers, the timing of this announcement seemed to be an effort to move past the racism row engulfing his party.
With Parliament now considering a formal censure motion and calls for Pochin’s suspension growing louder, the issue shows no sign of fading from the headlines. The events of the past few days have laid bare deep divisions in British politics over race, representation, and the limits of free expression. Whether this controversy marks a turning point for Reform UK—or for the wider debate on diversity in Britain—remains to be seen, but it has already left an indelible mark on the national conversation.
