I wasn't up to the job, says ex-Ukip leader

The leader of the UK Independence Party, Lord Pearson of Rannoch, resigned yesterday – saying he was bad at his job. The peer, who only took charge in November, said the party "deserved someone better" to put the case for leaving the European Union.

"We increased our vote by 50 per cent [at the general election], and have many exciting plans for the future," he said. "But I have learnt that I am not much good at party politics, which I do not enjoy."

Ukip's former leader Nigel Farage, who suffered serious injuries in a plane crash on polling day, said he would consider standing for the leadership again if he was physically fit. He sustained broken ribs, bruised lungs and facial injuries when his plane crashed at a Northamptonshire airfield.