06/09/2026
BREAKING: Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle has written to Reform UK leader Nigel Farage to raise concerns over his MPs' misuse of official parliamentary stationery.
His letter reads:
Dear Mr Farage,
Although I appreciate your tenure in the House of Commons has been somewhat hampered by your decision to request your appointment as Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead, granted on 8 July 2026 by the then-Chancellor of the Exchequer and Second Lord of the Treasury, the Right Honourable Member for Leeds West, but later relinquished through your re-election to the seat of Clacton, a number of letters have been brought to my attention which have raised some concerns.
These letters, all of which were addressed to you and dated yesterday, contain fictional and satirical resignations from the Reform UK Members for Newark and Skegness. These letters were printed on official stationery reserved for House of Commons business and protected by Crown Copyright laws.
I am sure you are aware I have been patient with your conduct and that of Reform UK MPs since your election in 2024. However, a line has to be drawn and, when laws are potentially being breached, my Chairman of Ways and Means, her deputies and I have all agreed conduct of this kind is not to be tolerated. Further, we agreed that conduct such as that recently shown by your MPs has the classic call card of a Nigel Farage publicity stunt written all over it.
As we are both well-informed and of which is amply documented in the public domain, your conduct is already in the process of an investigation by the independent Commissioner for Parliamentary Standards. The issues raised above also fall under the scope of the Commissioner for Parliamentary Standards.
As Speaker of the House of Commons, I am ultimately responsible for the protection of these standards, including the proper use of House of Commons documents. I have, therefore, no other choice than to escalate these issues for investigation to the Commissioner for Parliamentary Standards alongside the existing investigations already in progress.
I would like to reassure you that this action is by far the bare minimum action that my Chairman of Ways and Means, her deputies and I are compelled to take without compromising the rules all MPs, including myself, are expected to follow. This is to avoid fuelling your already seemingly constant accusations of an "establishment stitch-up" whenever your conduct is criticised, which is becoming increasingly tiresome.
In addition to the above points, I should remind you that a 69-year-old Bolton Wanderers supporter from a small village near Chorley who speaks with such a strong southern Lancashire accent that BBC Parliament provides subtitles during their broadcasts of proceedings of the House, can surely not be considered "the establishment" when compared to a public school attending millionaire from the Home Counties such as yourself.
Please be advised that this letter will be published in the public domain and on the Parliament.UK website. If you have any queries about this letter or its contents, please do not hesitate to contact a member of my team in the usual manner.
I would appreciate your full co-operation with House staff and the panel forming the Commissioner of Parliamentary Standards investigating these claims.
Yours sincerely,
Sir Lindsay Hoyle MP
Speaker of the House of Commons
Unaffiliated Member of Parliament for Chorley
