Ukip leader Henry Bolton loses vote of confidence

Ukip's ruling committee has unanimously backed a vote of no confidence in leader Henry Bolton. A Ukip spokesman said: "The committee took the decision to hold a vote of no confidence in the leadership of Henry Bolton."The vote was carried unanimously."

This decision will automatically trigger an emergency general meeting of the party, to allow party members to endorse or reject the vote.

Earlier Bolton had insisted he wanted to stay in the job despite a furore about offensive messages sent by his former girlfriend, saying the party could collapse if he were ousted. In interviews ahead of the national executive vote yesterday, Bolton said he had done nothing wrong in his liaison with Jo Marney. His position has come under pressure after social media and text messages from Marney emerged in which she used racist terms about Meghan Markle, Prince Harry's fiancée, and other offensive language.