Guy Verhofstadt just killed ‘semi-retired’ Nigel Farage with words and it’s a glorious watch

John Plunkett. Updated April 30th, 2019

The European Parliament’s Brexit co-ordinator Guy Verhofstadt has a way with words and it’s not the first time he has done this sort of thing.

But his takedown of Nigel Farage after the former UKIP, now Brexit party man described himself as ‘semi-retired’, is something else.

We have been openly and wilfully betrayed by our government. I haven’t come out of semi-retirement to muck about — I am giving this both barrels.

— Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) April 27, 2019

Two minutes of your time very well spent (and Farage’s reaction just makes it better).

Nigel Farage has been an elected MEP since 1999, but now says he comes out of "semi – retirement". As I already warned in 2012, the biggest waste of EU resources is Nigel Farage's salary. Why would anyone re-elect him to this role? pic.twitter.com/fwsAEu8kzr

— Guy Verhofstadt (@guyverhofstadt) April 29, 2019

No wonder it went madly viral.

Ouch! Farage is owned by Verhofstadt https://t.co/pVcklIN9ge

— Kevin Maguire (@Kevin_Maguire) April 29, 2019

Idle scrounger Farage, on the take in the EU for a decade exposed for the do-nothing money-grabbing charlatan that he is. https://t.co/AQ3sw8W5tt

— John Edwards (@JohnEdwards33) April 29, 2019

Nigel Farage in “ semi-retirement “ in the European Parliament. Guy Verhofstadt makes a killer point. Suddenly the European Parliament is having a new relevance! https://t.co/vYwHfCr1HK

— Will Hutton (@williamnhutton) April 29, 2019

Guy Verhofstadt nails it. Farage has just been drawing a salary for doing nothing for 20 years. https://t.co/GAlaCFfT1k

— Pete Timmins (@petertimmins3) April 30, 2019

Could only be better if a huge bucket of shit was tipped over Farage at the end. https://t.co/r9ZsU5Srjh

— John Niven HQ (@estellecostanza) April 29, 2019

Verhofstadt, the former PM of Belgium, wasn’t the only person to pick up on the ‘semi-retired’ thing of course.

https://twitter.com/grahamlithgow/status/1122101877741584384

You’ve come out of semi-retirement more times than Judy Garland and your reasons are always the same: a pathological need for attention and running out of money.

— Alex Andreou (@sturdyAlex) April 27, 2019

A quick reminder that Nigel Farage is an MEP for which he is paid €101,808 a year. He does so little to 'earn' a salary that most people could only dream of earning that he considers himself in semi-retirement. Can we please Bury this 'man-of-the-people' guff. https://t.co/0FMRAOKYFj

— Kevin Arscott (@thewalkingkev) April 27, 2019