Far-right German party to address Ukip conference

Nationalist party Alternative for Germany (AfD) will address supporters at Ukip’s autumn conference.

A senior figure from the group, which critics describe as far-right, will speak at the gathering in Devon later this week.

AfD finished third in Germany’s elections just four years after being formed and has vowed to fight “an invasion of foreigners”.

Ukip’s interim leader Steve Crowther said AfD had made a “brave” move to shun the centre-left consensus in a country where politics has been “overshadowed by the Nazi era”.

“Like Ukip, the AfD offers a balancing force within its national politics which has been skewed towards the centre-left consensus,” he said.

“This is a brave move in Germany, whose politics has been overshadowed by the Nazi era. It shows that the people are no longer prepared to be ignored and coerced by the liberal left.

“It is telling that the AfD vote comes from all age groups, is driven by former non-voters as well as disillusioned conservative and left voters, and comes largely from the employed and unemployed working class.

“Once again, the elites are learning that democracy actually means listening to the majority, no matter how much they despise their vulgar attitudes.”