Nigel Farage calls anti-Ukip pub protesters 'scum'

Nick Clegg has leapt to the defence of Nigel Farage, saying protesters who reportedly chased the Ukip leader and his family out of a pub should "leave his wife and kids out of it".

A Ukip source has told ITV News that yesterday's pub protest against Nigel Farage was a "pretty frightening experience".

Farage branded protesters who allegedly chased him out of a Kent pub before jumping on his car as "scum".

ITV News Deputy Political Editor Chris Ship reports:

A group of anti-Ukip protesters who invaded a pub where Nigel Farage was reportedly having lunch, forcing him to flee, have denied that he was with his children.

Protest organiser Dan Glass said: "He was sitting on his own and left on his own. We didn't see any kids".

Mr Farage called the demonstrators 'scum' after he said they scared his two young children and forced them to run away and hide. The children are now understood to have been found and returned home.

Nigel Farage has branded anti-Ukip protesters "scum" after they invaded a pub where he was having a family lunch.

The party leader was apparently with his wife and two younger daughters at the Queen's Head in Downe, Kent, when the incident took place.

Dozens of demonstrators initially went into the George & Dragon, where Mr Farage has previously been pictured having a drink, before realising he was in the other pub nearby.

They are said to have gone into the Queen's Head, chased the Farages out and then jumped on the Ukip leader's car bonnet as he drove away.

Mr Farage said afterwards: "I hope these 'demonstrators' are proud of themselves. My children were so scared by their behaviour that they ran away to hide.

"At the time of writing this a relative has gone to look for them, and they are not yet at home. These people are scum."

Protest organiser Dan Glass said the group was in fancy dress and included migrants, HIV activists, gay people, disabled people and breastfeeding mums.