Reform candidate's sickening attack on the royals during Jubilee celebrations - Jo Hart called monarchy 'benefit scroungers' and wrote 'make Lizzy the last' in horrifying social media post

A candidate for Nigel Farage's Reform UK party posted a vile anti-monarchy rant that branded the royals 'benefit scroungers' – during the Jubilee celebrations.

Jo Hart put the controversial comments about the late Queen Elizabeth, and other royals, on Facebook in 2022.

They included messages such as 'f*** the royals' and 'make Lizzy the last'.

The post is at odds with Mr Farage, who is a staunch monarchist and has questioned why anyone wouldn't want a constitutional monarchy 'which has served us incredibly well over the last few centuries'.

Reform was last night facing calls to axe Ms Hart but refused to condemn the comments or take any action against her.

She is standing in the Aberdeenshire North and Moray East seat, where Labour had to suspend its candidate for sharing pro-Russian material online.

The constituency is set to have a close battle between the SNP's Seamus Logan and the current Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross.

Ms Hart's Facebook post from June 2022, during the four-day bank holiday weekend to mark the Queen becoming the first British monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, claimed millions of people around the UK are struggling to eat, keep warm and keep the lights on.

The rant, which Ms Hart claims was a shared post, said: 'But then the Jubilee comes along, for our 'glorious monarch' who has never experienced the kind of hardship having to choose between heating or food, she doesn't have to worry about keeping the lights on or not, in fact, the many MANY millions that have been p****d away on the jubilee celebrations haven't even come from her pocket, but from the public purse.

'This HUGELY WASTEFUL light show at the palace is nothing but a slap in the face to all of us common folk who are struggling with energy bills right now!'

It concluded: 'So this weekend when you're cracking out the bunting and celebrating the jubilee, just use that massively washed brain of yours and think instead, at just how much of a p*** take this all really is.

'All the while I hear people banging on about people on benefits scrounging... THE SINGLE BIGGEST BENEFITS SCROUNGERS ARE THE MONARCHY IT'S TIME IT WAS SCRAPPED! F*** THE ROYALS! #makelizzythelast.'

The comments are embarrassing for Mr Farage, who last year questioned why rising numbers of people oppose the monarchy.

He said: 'Why would so many young people not think having a monarch was a benefit to this country, would not think having a constitutional monarchy – which I think has served us incredibly well over the last few centuries – why would they not want that to be there?'

Following the Queen's death in 2022, Mr Farage described her as 'the most respected human being in the world'.

A Scottish Conservative spokesman said: 'This disgusting attack on the late Queen Elizabeth must be condemned in the strongest possible terms.

'Reform must suspend this candidate for holding such vile anti-monarchy, anti-Britain views.'

The row is the latest in a series of controversies about Reform UK candidates.

In response to the social media comments, a Reform UK spokesman said the party's candidates were 'not party-political zombies' and 'have views of their own and are as free to express them as anyone else, even if they are not shared by all their party colleagues'.

When asked if his party would condemn the comments Ms Hart shared, David Kirkwood, deputy chairman of Reform UK Scotland, said: 'We are not going to comment.'

Speaking at her Highland home last night, Ms Hart said: 'We all have a right to make a comment. It wasn't actually my comment, it was a share.'