Racist MMA fighter, indie rock star, sleaze scandal MP and Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s dad – meet the pro-EU rabble standing for Change UK

PRO-EU party Change UK has already seen two of its candidates quit - just 24 hours after they were first unveiled yesterday.

The new grouping has been hit with controversy as it emerged key figures have a past of posting hateful messages online - including one who appeared to defend Gary Glitter.

And the party - which calls itself a "Remain alliance" - is now locked in a bitter feud with fellow Europhiles the Lib Dems.

A secret Change UK briefing document revealed they want to wipe the Liberal Democrats out and replace them as the main centrist, pro-EU force.

Ed Davey, one of the Lib Dems' top MPs, blasted the "aggressive" plans and accused Change UK of cloak-and-dagger politics.

The party, originally called The Independent Group, has signed up dozens of new candidates to stand for the European Parliament next month.

But who are the unlikely contenders recruited to the pro-EU cause?

MMA FIGHTER IN RACE STORM

Ali Sadjady is a mixed martial arts fighter who recently quit the Tories in protest at the party's alleged Islamophobia.

But he was forced to stand down as a Change UK candidate within hours after it emerged he'd posted racist comments online.

He wrote in 2017: "When I hear that 70% of pick pockets caught on the London Underground are Romanian it kind makes me want Brexit."

90S INDIE STAR

Crispin Hunt was the lead singer of Longpigs, an indie band who had a string of low-key hits in the mid-90s.

Bandmate Richard Hawley has gone on to a successful solo career - while Mr Hunt has worked as a producer and songwriter before starting his political career.

TUSK'S SIDEKICK

Jan Vincent-Rostowski has already had a history of political success - in Poland.

He was the country's finance minister from 2007 to 2013, and was also deputy to then-PM Donald Tusk, who is now president of the European Council.

Mr Vincent-Rostowski was born and brought up in London, where he has returned to stand for Change UK.

ANOTHER RACE ROW

Joseph Russo is the second Change UK candidate who's been forced to quit over racism.

He once declared, "Black women scare me," and suggested it was OK for teachers to have relationships with their pupils.

And he said the only reason police prosecuted Gary Glitter was because the celebrity paedophile was "low hanging fruit".

BORIS' LITTLE SISTER

Rachel Johnson, the sister of top Brexiteer Boris, is perhaps the best-known figure who's joined the party this week.

She was previously a Lib Dem member and has been an outspoken opponent of Brexit in her newspaper columns.

SLEAZE CLAIMS EX-MINISTER

Stephen Dorrell was a Tory MP for 36 years and served as Health Secretary in John Major's Cabinet.

But he was also embroiled in a string of sleaze probes - once when he used taxpayer funds to rent a flat from his friends, and again when he took a lucrative consultancy job while still an MP.

He quit the Conservatives to join Change UK because of his opposition to Brexit.

ACTIVIST BACKING PERV MP

Former Labour activist Nora Mulready has a long history of making controversial claims online.

In one blog post, she stood up for MP Simon Danczuk after he was caught sexting a 17-year-old girl.

She also defended far-right rabble-rouser Tommy Robinson had "hit [a] societal nerve and that needs to be acknowledged".

SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTOR'S DAD

Robin Bextor is an experienced telly producer and director who's also made videos for top pop acts.

But he's perhaps most famous as the father of singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor, daughter from his marriage to Blue Peter's Janet Ellis.

SOHO SOCIALITE

Matthew Hooberman was a key figure in the early days of plush London club Soho House.

As manager of the original branch, he once relocated the whole club to Cannes so he could continue to serve A-list customers during the French town's famed film festival.

We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online politics team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368. We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours