by Sam Tobin

FANTASIST Ukip leader Paul Nuttall accused Labour of being behind a conspiracy to destroy his career yesterday over his contested links to the 1989 Hillsborough stadium disaster.

Mr Nutall, who was forced into a grovelling apology last month for wrongly stating that he had lost “close personal friends” in the tragedy, which killed 96 Liverpool fans, said he would swear on oath he was at the game.

Mr Nuttall followed up his comments on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show by accusing Labour of “orchestrating” rumours which have circulated that he was not in the stadium.

He said: “There was an orchestrated campaign which I knew was coming which was done by a political party. I’ll leave it at that, OK?”

Pressed if he was referring to Labour, he said: “Yes. I am actually. They suggested that I wasn’t actually at Hillsborough.

“I provided witness statements, I have given evidence to [criminal investigation] Operation Resolve and I’m prepared to stand in a witness stand in a court of law.”

Mr Nuttall declined to name the person he claimed he knew who lost their life, but said people needed to get “perspective” on the issue.

He said: “It’s not as if I have lied about weapons of mass destruction.

“It’s not as if I have taken us into an illegal war. It’s not as if I’ve been caught in a paedophile gang or anything.”

He blamed the “close friend” claims on one of his press officers, who he insisted had wrongly uploaded them to the website and subsequently offered to resign.

He added that he had refused to let her go because it was his responsibility that he “didn’t check” what she had written.

Mr Nuttall claimed the same press officer had put out the suggestion that he’d played professional football for Tranmere Rovers, when in fact he only ever made the youth side.

He said: “I played aged 13-18 at Tranmere Rovers. I played as a youngster and for the youth team. And yes, it was the same press officer. It was a mistake.”

Mr Nuttall admitted suffering “moments of doubt” about his leadership after a floundering campaign to become Ukip’s second MP saw him only just hold off the Tories for second place.

Ukip had thought Stoke, which voted overwhelmingly to leave the EU in June, was fertile ground to challenge Labour, but the gamble backfired as Gareth Snell held the seat with a slightly reduced majority of 2,620.