UKIP is now the only rival to Labour across the North because the Tories are “disappearing”, the party’s leader claimed today (Tuesday, April 23).

Nigel Farage predicted UKIP would make hefty gains at next month’s county council elections – including in North Yorkshire, where it will field candidates in many seats.

Speaking at a Westminster event, Mr Farage pointed out the Tories were the largest party in Scotland 50 years ago, but had now “virtually disappeared” there.

And he added: “I think, north of Birmingham, the Conservative party is completely disappearing from the North of England.

“I think UKIP is becoming the opposition party in the North of England. We will undoubtedly come second in [next month’s] South Shields by-election.

But, Mr Farage admitted: “The problem is that being the opposition in the North is great, but, I have to be honest, the gap between us and Labour is quite big.”

He said the Eastleigh by-election - when UKIP relegated the Tories to third place - had convinced people that his anti-EU party was a serious force worth voting for.

The result had smashed the myth that UKIP supporters were “retired half colonels, living on the edge of Salisbury plain, wishing that the Empire was back”.

Mr Farage pointed to immigration and social mobility - where UKIP would bring back grammar schools, to help “working class kids” - as popular policies, as well as Europe.

And he argued UKIP, unlike the mainstream parties, didn’t simply “whinge or moan” about Europe, adding: “What we say is it’s a bad marriage - let’s get divorced.”