Vote Leave whistleblower claims Brexiteers in UK government ‘hate’ Welsh and Scots
Shahmir Sanni during a Channel 4 interview. Sanni called on Scotland to seek independence 'as soon as you can' following accusations he made that Westminster 'hated Scotland'; Channel 4 - Credit: Archant
The whistleblower who exposed Vote Leave for breaking electoral funding rules during the Brexit referendum has urged Scotland and Wales to seek independence, claiming the Brexiteers in the UK government 'hate' the Scottish and Welsh.
Speaking on Not Another Fake News Cast podcast, Shahmir Sanni said Westminster held a deep dislike for Wales and Scotland and urged its citizens to seek independence 'as soon as you can'.
'I'm totally pro-independence. I am totally pro-independence. They (the government) hate the Scottish,' he was reported saying in The National.
You may also want to watch:
'This is what a lot of people don't understand - they genuinely, genuinely do not like Scotland. The whole idea of Scotland they don't like, and this is something I never understood because I grew up in Pakistan.
Most Read
- 1 The deep roots of Labour's red wall decline
- 2 The Remainers' case for keeping the United Kingdom together
- 3 How Brexit has turned sour for the dairy industry
- 4 What's next for Laurence Fox after London mayor fiasco?
- 5 Former Tory speaker admits voting Labour after labeling Boris Johnson a 'liar'
- 6 Dominic Cummings warns Boris Johnson against next stage of unlocking
- 7 Labour needs more positivity, more patriotism, more policy... and less wokery
- 8 The slow death of Channel Islands Norman
- 9 Lawyers expose 'false claims' made by ministers over visa-free music tours of EU after Brexit
- 10 Watch Question Time for an insight into the minds of voters
'The way that they would talk about the Welsh and the Scottish … You really should seek independence - because they hate you.
'Get out as soon as you can.'
Sanni, a former Vote Leave volunteer, revealed that campaigners had broken electorial funding regulations during the Brexit referendum in 2016 when they exceeded legal spending limits.
When the story broke in 2018, former Theresa May political aide and Vote Leave organiser Stephen Parkinson revealed to the press that he had had a relationship with Sanni, which was then posted on Dominic Cummings' blog.
At the time, Sanni's family were based in Pakistan where homosexuality is a crime punishable by death. Although his immediate family were not aware of Cummings' post, his aunt and uncle were questioned about his sexuality by Daily Mail and Sunday Times reporters.
Discussing the experience, Sanni told presenters Gerry and Paul McCann: 'It's still something that I kind of have to take a big breath before I talk about because it was such a whirlwind.
'It wasn't just me being outed it was me being fired a few weeks later then me having to deal with whatever comes with a whistleblower, particularly whistleblower against two future prime ministers and two future cabinets and all the advisers of the last two Conservative governments and one Conservative government before that.
'So for me that was the most personal trauma that I faced in whistleblowing and I think there were so many different attacks coming at me that I don't think I've even yet come to terms or understand how that impacted me.'
Become a Supporter
The New European is proud of its journalism and we hope you are proud of it too. We believe our voice is important - both in representing the pro-EU perspective and also to help rebalance the right wing extremes of much of the UK national press. If you value what we are doing, you can help us by making a contribution to the cost of our journalism.
