Nigel Farage claims a “woke brigade” is marching through public and private companies after emails revealed NatWest staff gloated about the closure of his bank account in a series of sniggering internal messages.

The crowing remarks were handed over to the former Ukip leaders through a subject access request, and shone light on conversations among staff members who joked he had been “debanked” by Coutts, a NatWest subsidiary, and that they hoped it “knocked him down a peg or two.”

In an angry tirade agains the bank, Mr Farage also revealed the internal documents referred to him a “crackpot”, “sketchy” and “a fool”.