Nigel Farage leaves door open for Ukip return

Nigel Farage has repeated his attack on the first-past-the-post voting system, saying he felt the 3.8 million voters who backed Ukip should be better represented.

Writing in the Independent,he said: "It is my view that the first-past-the-post system is now totally bankrupt. It has turned general election campaigns into "please vote for me, I'm not quite as ugly as the other one" situations, rather than parties fighting over policy positions and serious issues. It has directly led to a campaign of total negativity and triviality.

Mr Farage also said he would "think seriously" about his next move, and hinted he wanted to play a role in an referendum on the EU.

He said: "I say that, though it nags in the back of my mind that this majority Conservative government has promised a referendum on Britain's EU membership. I guess I face some tough decisions."

• Read: Farage 'relieved' after loss as Ukip return just one MP

Ukip's only sitting MP, Douglas Carswell, has ruled himself out of the race to be the party's next leader.

Mr Carswell, who held his Clacton seat on a reduced majority, said he would not seek to fill the post vacated by Nigel Farage, who announced his resignation after losing out in Thanet South.

Mr Farage said he was taking a break but left the door open for a return when the party elects a new leader in September while endorsing Suzanne Evans, the deputy chairman, to be a stand-in until the leadership challenge is complete.

Mr Carswell praised Mr Farage, the man behind his defection from the Conservatives, as a "heroic and inspirational figure" but told the Times (£): "I am not going to be running as leader."