Tim Aker has been sacked as Ukip’s policy chief after failing to complete the party’s overdue manifesto.

It is understood that Ukip had set the beginning of January as the deadline to agree policies before sending off the manifesto to be checked and costed by an independent think-tank.

Suspicions among senior party figures emerged in recent weeks that Mr Aker was running behind schedule on completing a final draft.

A senior Ukip insider said: “There was growing disquiet that none of us had seen hide nor hair on the policy front. It was especially annoying for candidates, who are banned from making any specific pledges before the manifesto is published.

“They don’t know what to tell voters on the doorstep.”

Several leading Ukip members raised