Nigel Farage threatened to overshadow the election of new UK Independence Party leader Diane James by saying he is considering a return to a major national political role as an MP in 2020.

The former Ukip leader is also planning a UK-wide tour in the spring when he will talk to audiences about Brexit, after a personal tour of Continental capitals in the next few months to encourage others to quit the European Union.

The news came as Mrs James was elected Ukip leader and immediately moved to remove Neil Hamilton, a divisive Ukip Welsh assembly member, from the speaking line-up at the party conference on Saturday.