What is really going on in politics? Get our daily email briefing straight to your inbox Sign up Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

As news emerged last night that Nigel Farage is coming out of ‘retirement’ - an astonishing video has resurfaced.

The clip shows the then-Labour Prime Minister brutally demolishing the then-relatively unknown figure in British politics, at the European Parliament in 2005.

Farage had not yet been elected leader of the party, but had just had a pop at Blair, complaining: “Why should British taxpayers pay for new sewers in Budapest, a new underground system in Warsaw, when our own public services are crumbling in London?”

After initially laughing off Farage’s barbs, Blair gradually lost his rag with the right-winger.

(Image: AFP) (Image: Reuters)

Jabbing his finger towards Farage, he said: “You sit with our country's flag but you do not represent our country's interests. This is the year 2005, not 1945. We're not fighting each other anymore. These are our partners, our colleagues and our future lies in Europe.

"When you say and your colleagues say 'what do we get in return for our investment?' - I'll tell you what we get.

(Image: Reuters)

"We get Europe that's unified after years of dictatorship, we get economic development in countries we have championed. We get a future reform that allows once and for all to put an end to discussion about rebates, Common Agricultural Policy and get a proper reform budget for Europe.

"That's what we get if we have the vision to seize that opportunity."