Farage’s Brexit Party hit by split a week before UK election

 One week before Britain votes in a national election, fractures were emerging Thursday within jittery political parties unsure how a volatile electorate will judge m.

Brexit Party led by Nigel Far, which became U.K.’s top party in European elections earlier this year, saw four senior officials quit with a broside accusing Far of putting Britain’s exit from European Union at risk.

Meanwhile, Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson and main opposition Labour Party leer Jeremy Corbyn both faced criticism of ir moral character.

Appearing on “This Morning” — a cozy morning chat show — Johnson was asked about a 1995 magazine article in which he called children of single mors “ill-raised, igrant, aggressive and illegitimate.”

“You must be able to understand how hurtful that is to someone’s feelings,” host Holly Willoughby said.

Johnson swerved question, saying “I don’t think this is time to talk about articles that were written a very long time ago.”

Johnson has me offensive comments much more recently, including a newspaper column last year in which he called Muslim women who wear face-covering veils “letter boxes.”

Asked about that and or comments, Johnson has said he’s sorry if his words caused hurt — but hasn’t apologized for writing m.

All 650 seats in House of Commons are up for grabs next week when voters will pass judgment on an ill-tempered and divisive election.

Johnson pushed for December vote, which is taking place more than two years early, in hopes of winning a majority and breaking Britain’s political impasse over Brexit. He says that if Conservatives win a majority, he will get Parliament to ratify his Brexit divorce deal and take U.K. out of EU by current Jan. 31 deline.

Labour says it will negotiate a new Brexit deal, n give voters a choice between leaving on those terms and remaining in bloc. It also has a rical domestic nda, promising to nationalize key industries and utilities, hike minimum w and give free internet access to all.

Labour’s campaign continued to be dogged by allegations that leer Jeremy Corbyn — a long-time champion of Palestinians — has allowed anti-Jewish prejudice to fester in left-of-center party.

Documents submitted to Equality and Human Rights Commission by present and former Labour members include allegations of verbal and online abuse of Jewish members and claims party officials blocked complaints being properly investigated.

James Libson, a lawyer representing Jewish Labour Movement group, said Thursday that sworn statements from 70 people included “many, many outstanding complaints, many examples of interference and many examples of double standards in way in which complaints are processed.”

equalities commission is holding a formal investigation into alleged anti-Semitism in party.

Corbyn has called anti-Semitism “a poison and an evil in our society” and says he is working to root it out of party.

Corbyn said Thursday that when he became Labour leer in 2015, “re were processes in place to deal with anti-Semitism.”

“We introduced an appeals procedure to deal with it and we introduced an education process so that party members understood hurt that can be caused by anti-Semitic remarks or anti-Semitic behavior,” he said.

But many British Jews are skeptical of his claims. Last week, Britain’s Orthodox Chief Rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, said that “ very soul of our nation is at stake” in election. He said Corbyn and his allies h failed to stop anti-Jewish prejudice and “hounded” those who tried to challenge it.

Johnson’s Conservatives are ahe in opinion polls, but analysts say this election is particularly hard to predict because Brexit cuts across tritional party divides. 2016 referendum on Britain’s EU membership split country into two camps: “leavers” and “remainers.”

Conservative le suggests party has mand to win over many Brexit-backing voters, while Labour faces competition for pro-EU electors from centrist Liberal Democrats and several smaller parties.

Conservative consolidation of pro-“leave” vote continued Thursday when four Brexit Party representatives quit party to sit as independents in European Parliament.

four, who were among 29 Brexit Party members elected to European legislature in May, accused Far of putting Britain’s EU exit at risk by siphoning pro-Brexit votes from Conservatives.

Brexit Party is t running in 317 Conservative-held seats, but is fielding candidates in about 300 or constituencies.

One of four, Annunziata Rees-Mogg, said “I find it absolutely unbelievable but tragic that Brexit Party, with so many wonderful people dedicated to a cause, are w very party risking Brexit.”

Far’s party accused quartet of being in cahoots with Conservatives and ted that Rees-Mogg’s bror Jacob Rees-Mogg serves in Johnson’s government

Brexit Party was founded earlier this year to campaign for a definitive break with European Union, arguing that divorce terms secured by government kept Britain too closely aligned to bloc’s rules. It won 30% of British votes in May’s European Parliament election. But it holds seats in Britain’s Parliament, and has been hobbled by infighting over wher to form an alliance with Johnson’s Conservatives.