Rishi Sunak ‘respects’ ex-UKIP boss Nigel Farage but WON’T join him in head-to-head debate

RISHI Sunak has rejected the chance to debate Nigel Farage on immigration despite saying he “respects” the Brexit campaigner.

The Reform honorary president, who will not stand as a candidate for Westminster in July, had challenged the PM to a head-to-head on small boat arrivals and record net migration levels.

Farage claimed that if Sunak turned down the live TV debate it would show he did not have a plan to stop the boats.

But a Tory spokesman shot down the idea, insisting only the PM and Labour chief Sir Keir Starmer would face off.

They told The Sun: "We respect Nigel but there’s only two people who can be Prime Minister at the end of this campaign, Rishi or Starmer, and that's who should be up on stage debating each other."

In response, Farage told The Sun: “Rishi knows his Rwanda plan can’t work and that’s why he’s running scared of me.

I thank him for the compliment, but is there really going to be only one debate with the Prime Minister in this election campaign?”

Yesterday Labour chief Starmer also backed out of a debate with Farage.

Asked about the idea, he told reporters: "Well, look, I've got debates with the Prime Minister coming up, which I'm very happy to engage in, but I'm on the road campaigning.

"The people I most want to talk to directly to voters.

"That's why when we do events, we usually get quite a lot of people together like this and have an open Q&A, so that anybody can ask me any question they like or put a proposition on the table."

It came as Farage launched his first intervention for Reform in Dover, Kent — the landing point for a record 10,000 small boat migrants so far this year.

He called for the declaration of a “national security emergency” over the scale of undocumented arrivals.

Blasting the PM, he went on: “You can use whatever word you want.

“I happen to think ‘invasion’ is pretty appropriate.

“I was ahead of the curve on this, and I was right.

“If 3,800 boats and 125,000 boats isn’t a sort of slow-motion D-Day in reverse, I don’t know what is.”

Farage also insisted he was not a chicken for bailing out of standing as a Reform candidate and pledged to go “full-time” on the campaign trail.

The Brexit frontman added he was “very disappointed” not to be running for a seat but refused to declare whether the US or UK election was more important to him.

He said: “I stood for UKIP, which was a pressure group, many times, and if we saved our deposit that was enough for an all-night party.

“For me to win any constituency I’m going to need a lot of time and a lot of data.

“But I’m very, very happy to support the campaign.”

Asked if he had fobbed off the chance to be an MP to help boost Donald Trump’s White House bid, he conceded the UK election “matters less than previous ones”.

Farage went on: “The world was a much better and safer place with Donald Trump in the White House than it has been with Joe Biden”.

“I wouldn’t become an official Trump adviser if he was elected.

“Unofficially? Look, he’s a friend of mine.

“I'm not saying Britain doesn't matter — far from it. I'm British. I'm here.

“I do think who wins in America, for global safety, is absolutely vital.”

Despite not standing for a seat, Farage declared he would still face off with “middle managers” Sunak and Starmer.

He attacked the Labour leader, 61, for having “no energy, no optimism, and no substantive policies”.

Farage added: “I feel this General Election campaign has got off to the dullest start possible.

“Two men with the appearance of middle managers are vying to be our prime minister.”

Asked to respond to Tory criticism that a vote for Reform would only boost Starmer, he blasted: “Given you know Labour are going to win, why not vote for something you actually believe in?

”The Conservatives will be in opposition but they won’t be the opposition.

“They’re too divided and too ineffective.”

Reform also revealed long-time fuel duty campaigner Howard Cox will stand as their candidate in Dover, after standing for Mayor of London earlier this month.