THE SNP are “openly racist” and anti-English hatred in Scotland is reaching “astonishing levels”, according to Ukip Leader Nigel Farage.

Farage said the party have drummed up “anti-English hatred” throughout the referendum campaign, claiming that the hostility in the party towards the English is “extraordinary”.

He went on to place the blame on former First Minister Alex Salmond, saying he did nothing to condemn protestors who met Farage in Edinburgh, challenging his stance on immigration.

The Ukip leader made these astonishing claims against the SNP after telling gathered journalists that he is “bored” of the party being accused of racism, despite the many serious allegations that have been made.

Claiming that Ukip were a “non-racist” party, Farage described them as an “all embracing” saying others are “far more guilty”. A Ukip candidate faced calls to stand down over Facebook posts in which he said his worst nightmare was working in a “Pakistani club” and that being gay was “nothing to be proud of”. Farage recently defended one Ukip candidate who stood down after being filmed talking about “poofters” and a “Chinky”, saying he was speaking the way “a lot of people from his background do”.

The Ukip leader also defended Scottish MEP David Coburn after he compared Scottish Government Minister Humza Yousaf to convicted terrorist Abu Hamza, claiming it was simply “a joke in poor taste”.

Far-right groups such as the National Front and Britain First pledge their support for the anti-EU party in next month’s election. “If my supporters behaved the way some of those pro-independence supporters behaved in the referendum I’d have been painted out to be the worst person that had been seen for 70 years in British politics,’ Farage said yesterday.