In 2015, Nigel Farage visited Swansea, Wales, in the run-up to the referendum on European Union membership. He made several claims during his visit, stating that Wales was receiving a “rotten deal” from the EU, alleging its membership was causing severe damage to the Welsh steel industry and that small businesses were at risk of collapse. He claimed that the UK had ceded control of fishing, industry, farming, and business to the EU, but provided no evidence to support these claims.
Fast forward four years. By this time, the UK had voted to leave the EU, and Mr Farage was back in Wales once more, this time in Merthyr Tydfil, campaigning for a UKIP victory in the European elections. When questioned by a BBC reporter about the benefits to Wales of leaving the EU, by then referred to as “Brexit”, Mr Farage was unable to answer. When questioned about the money Wales received from the EU, specifically £250 million a year, Mr Farage simply responded that “we” have given away hundreds of billions over the last few decades.