Nick Robinson and Robert Jenrick on the Today programme. BBC presenter Nick Robinson clashed with Robert Jenrick over his claims that the government is failing to give Nigel Farage the protection he needs. The pair went head-to-head after it emerged the Reform UK leader rejected the same taxpayer-funded protection package given to Tory leader Kemi Badenoch when he was offered it. That would have seen him receive a bodyguard, a car and a trained driver at all times. However, Farage insisted it was not enough to protect him from the threats he faces and turned it down. He is now set to have a meeting with the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (RAVEC), an independent body which assesses the threat posed to high-profile people, to discuss his concerns. The row has erupted in the wake of the alleged murder of Ann Widdecombe, the former Tory minister who became a Reform spokeswoman. A 28-year-old man has been arrested and counter-terror police are now leading the investigation. On Radio 4′s Today programme, Jenrick, Reform’s Treasury spokesman, accused the government of “downgrading” the protection given to Farage after he became an MP in 2024. “He initially was given a comprehensive plan that was commensurate with the threat that he faced,” he said. “Then that was downgraded. I don’t know why, maybe that will be explained to Nigel when he meets the committee. But that feels to me to have been very unwise, to say the least.” He added: “Sadly this is a man who is under great threat and think the authorities are just very blase about that, as are parts of the media. “Just the other day parts of the media were happy to publish photographs which made it very easy to know where his daughter lived [and] his homes.” But Robinson told him: “Nigel Farage posed in front of his own homes for the cameras repeatedly.” Jenrick insisted that Reform MPs face a greater threat than other politicians because they “raise issues that many mainstream politicians shy away from”. He said: “If you talk about Islamist extremism, as I do and Nigel Farage has done for many years, you are likely to be in considerably more danger than those who don’t.” Robinson hit back: “You can’t say that Mr Jenrick, there’s no evidence for that at all. There’s a threat from the far right in this country. Ask Diane Abbott, if she was in that seat, ask the family of Jo Cox. There are people on all sides of politics who have become a target.” He went on: “In the last few minutes, you have attacked the media, you’ve attacked the police, you’ve attacked the government, you’ve attacked the [Commons] Speaker, you’ve attacked the establishment who apparently want someone dead in the Reform party. “What do you say to those who say ’yes, this is a terrible tragedy what happened to Ann Widdecombe, we don’t actually know why she was murdered yet, we don’t even know if she was murdered because of her connection with Reform UK. It could be. None of this is clear until the police complete their investigation. “But it does suit you and Nigel Farage to change the subject nationally from the fact that Mr Farage took a vast donation of £5 million from someone living abroad and he wishes to connect that with his security when in fact it has nothing to do with it at all, it’s about a breach of parliamentary rules.” Jenrick then accused Robinson of reading off “a pre-scripted final question to me” – something the presenter angrily denied. The Reform MP went on: “The point I am making is that the government chose not to give Nigel Farage the security he needed. They now have, as a result of Ann Widdecombe’s appalling murder, offered him a meeting. “The home secretary could have offered him that meeting a year ago, two years ago, she chose not to. That is playing politics with the safety of politicians and I suspect that’s because they don’t like the views that Reform politicians take forward.” Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster. Related... Nigel Farage Says He Is Being Treated Like 'A War Criminal' By The Media Nigel Farage's Approval Ratings Plummet Amid Row Over His Finances British Voters Want Count Binface To Beat Nigel Farage In Clacton By-Election