Reform UK discussion

[35B]

Just about anyone would be a better candidate than him. A nasty, spiteful little man with close to zero experience of the real world, given to telling lie after lie to suit his and his paymasters' agenda

The pity is that he used to be a decent academic, before he was swallowed by what he studied.

 

[muz379]

Isn't that route pencilled in for a tram or tram/train service? If so, the new MP could only cancel it rather than anything else (if that's in their powers?)?

I think last I read on this TFGM were looking at plans for tram train operations over the line and have said they plan to submit a business case to the DFT this year. So nothing concrete on that one yet.

It isn't really in the gift of the MP to "cancel" it. They could I guess oppose TFGM's plans and put pressure on the government not to approve any business case although even for Reform that would be a bizzare take unless they did it on the "use the money for local roads instead" ticket. But better public transport links are one of those things that genuinely do enjoy good levels of public support.

 

[styles]

Reform now up to 2nd place ahead of Labour in Scottish Parliament voting intention according to YouGov, though SNP still have a commanding 14 and 9 point lead on the constituency and regional votes respectively.

SNP lead, Reform UK in second in YouGov January 2026 Holyrood voting intention | YouGov

Labour are down to just 15% in our first figures in the run up to the 2026 election

yougov.co.uk

• Reform UK now second-placed party in Scottish voting intention
• SNP still at the front of the pack, leading Reform by 14 points on the constituency vote and 9 points on the list vote
• Constituency vote: SNP 34%, Reform UK 20%, Labour 15%, Conservatives 10%, Lib Dems 10%, Greens 9%
• Regional list vote: SNP: 29%, Reform UK 20%, Labour 15%, Greens, 12%, Conservatives 11%, Lib Dems 9%
• Just 32% of 2024 Scottish Labour voters intend to give the party their constituency vote in May, with 14% opting for Reform UK and 13% for the SNP, while 21% are undecided
• Scots disapprove of the Scottish government’s record by 57% to 25% and of the UK government’s record by 75% to 10%
  

 

[AlterEgo]

The pity is that he used to be a decent academic, before he was swallowed by what he studied.

Yes, quite. He went down the plughole a few years back.

 

[Railwaycat]

Just watched Forage's party political broadcast....not.

He's morphing into Trump! This nation is great, we should all love it, and it will be greater in the future! (and we don't really dislike foreigners)

Not a single mention of how reform is going to make anything better, just a melancholic ramble.

 

[CarrotPie]

Just watched Forage's party political broadcast....not.

He's morphing into Trump! This nation is great, we should all love it, and it will be greater in the future! (and we don't really dislike foreigners)

Not a single mention of how reform is going to make anything better, just a melancholic ramble.

Business as usual, then. Good good, really hope he ends up as the next PM.

 

[ainsworth74]

Bit of local flavour but the Reform candidate standing in a by-election in Redcar and Cleveland has some lovely opinions:

Mike Manning, a former Royal Artillery serviceman, has been accused by a senior Liberal Democrat MP of “antisemitic and xenophobic” posts on the social media site X (formerly Twitter), on an account which has been subsequently deleted.

In posts as recently as November Mr Manning allegedly posted: "Jews, Muslims... there is something about circumcision that goes to their heads."

That same month on 9th November 2025 in a reply Mr Manning said appeared to say: "We already pay the Jizya tax, it's called Universal Credits. They are all on it". Jizya is an historic Islamic tax levied on non-Muslims, in exchange for protection and allegiance.

Similarly, he has been criticised for his reply to a post wishing people Happy Kwanzaa - a cultural festival celebrated in the US by some African Americans from December 26 to January 1.

The ‘offensive’ reply read: "Are you having the traditional stuffed Chimpanzee for Kwanzaa dinner?"

Nigel Farage opens investigation into Reform candidate over 'racist' and 'sickening' social media posts | LBC

Mike Manning is Reform UK's candidate in an upcoming by-election on Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council

www.lbc.co.uk

Glad that the candidate vetting has really sorted itself out now...

Apparently Reform have since said that he will no longer be their candidate but I assume it's too late to reissue ballot papers as the election is only a few weeks away.

 

[styles]

Bit of local flavour but the Reform candidate standing in a by-election in Redcar and Cleveland has some lovely opinions:

Nigel Farage opens investigation into Reform candidate over 'racist' and 'sickening' social media posts | LBC

Mike Manning is Reform UK's candidate in an upcoming by-election on Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council

www.lbc.co.uk

Glad that the candidate vetting has really sorted itself out now...

Apparently Reform have since said that he will no longer be their candidate but I assume it's too late to reissue ballot papers as the election is only a few weeks away.

I'm surprised they've deselected him in all honesty. This is the kind of opinion which would resonate with many Reform voters.

 

[jon0844]

I'm surprised they've deselected him in all honesty. This is the kind of opinion which would resonate with many Reform voters.

They need to dog whistle, not say things out loud.

 

[CarrotPie]

They need to dog whistle, not say things out loud.

I don't think some of their members would understand a dog whistle, though...and "saying the quiet part out loud" has been their general policy for quiet a while now.

 

[317 forever]

Reform only has 3 established names with little (if any) Conservative history : Nigel Farage, Richard Tice and Zia Yusuf.

They are easily outnumbered by recent defectors from the Conservatives.

Other parties could attempt to discourage voters from voting Reform on the basis that in membership terms they are the new Conservatives.

 

[Broucek]

Interesting article in the FT about Reform and Kent County Council

Paul Chamberlain, one of the Reform UK cabinet members in charge of the so-called Department of Local Government Efficiency [Dolge], told the FT they had taken control nine months ago expecting to find vast amounts of waste but that had not materialised. “We made some assumptions that we would come in here and find some of the craziness that [Elon Musk’s cost-cutting vehicle] Doge found in America . . . and that was wrong, we didn’t find any of that,” Chamberlain said. Members of the former Conservative administration “weren’t crazy, they were business people”, he added.

I don't know whether to admire his honesty or to despair that he stood for office with so little understanding of why most local authorities are short of money (adult social care and SEND requirements).

 

[35B]

Interesting article in the FT about Reform and Kent County Council

Paul Chamberlain, one of the Reform UK cabinet members in charge of the so-called Department of Local Government Efficiency [Dolge], told the FT they had taken control nine months ago expecting to find vast amounts of waste but that had not materialised. “We made some assumptions that we would come in here and find some of the craziness that [Elon Musk’s cost-cutting vehicle] Doge found in America . . . and that was wrong, we didn’t find any of that,” Chamberlain said. Members of the former Conservative administration “weren’t crazy, they were business people”, he added.

I don't know whether to admire his honesty or to despair that he stood for office with so little understanding of why most local authorities are short of money (adult social care and SEND requirements).

Its also increasingly clear that DOGE weren't actually about saving money, but to act as a facade for scooping up a shed load of data that wouldn't otherwise have been available.

 

[ainsworth74]

Its also increasingly clear that DOGE weren't actually about saving money, but to act as a facade for scooping up a shed load of data that wouldn't otherwise have been available.

Whilst also probably killing a few hundred thousand people:

The Trump administration’s decision to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths from infectious diseases and malnutrition, according to Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Atul Gawande.

Gawande—a surgeon, author, and distinguished professor in residence at Ariadne Labs, which he co-founded—served in the Biden administration as the assistant administrator for global health at USAID. He wrote a Nov. 5 article in the New Yorker about the devastating impact of the loss of USAID funds around the world. He was also featured in an accompanying short documentary called “Rovina’s Choice,” which he co-executive produced, that told the story of how one mother living in a Kenyan refugee camp tried to save her severely malnourished daughter after U.S. support dried up.

In the article, Gawande cited an analysis in The Lancet that estimated that USAID assistance—aimed at combatting diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, and polio, reducing maternal and child deaths, and fighting malnutrition—had saved 92 million lives over two decades.

The dismantling of USAID, according to models from Boston University epidemiologist Brooke Nichols, “has already caused the deaths of six hundred thousand people, two-thirds of them children,” Gawande wrote. He noted that the toll will continue to grow and may go unseen because it can take months or years for people to die from lack of treatments or vaccine-preventable illnesses—and because deaths are scattered.

USAID shutdown has led to hundreds of thousands of deaths | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

The Trump administration’s decision to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths from infectious diseases and malnutrition, according to Harvard Chan School’s Atul Gawande.

hsph.harvard.edu

 

[fgwrich]

In a moment of incredible stupidity, Sky News’s Beth Rigby reports tonight that Braverman and Jenrick had wandered into the Aye lobby filled with Labour MPs to lifting the two child benefit cap.

Rigby reports that “A source tells me they "got on their phones trying to get instructions from Farage as to whether they should be there or not"

"They tried to leave at one point but got trapped as the doors were locked"

A Reform source confirms this happened & says it was a 'genuine mistake' & neither MP registered a vote. All other Reform MPs voted against....

However, as both MPs went through the lobby the votes were officially recorded on the House of Commons register. So Jenrick and Braverman voted with Labour tonight to lift the two child benefit cap.

 

[SuspectUsual]

Instructions from Farage, rather than their Chief Whip?

 

[brad465]

What happened to Farage bringing in "experienced" MPs?

 

[styles]

In a moment of incredible stupidity, Sky News’s Beth Rigby reports tonight that Braverman and Jenrick had wandered into the Aye lobby filled with Labour MPs to lifting the two child benefit cap.

Rigby reports that “A source tells me they "got on their phones trying to get instructions from Farage as to whether they should be there or not"

"They tried to leave at one point but got trapped as the doors were locked"

A Reform source confirms this happened & says it was a 'genuine mistake' & neither MP registered a vote. All other Reform MPs voted against....

However, as both MPs went through the lobby the votes were officially recorded on the House of Commons register. So Jenrick and Braverman voted with Labour tonight to lift the two child benefit cap.

This should all be electronic voting anyway in my view.

I'd also potentially ban the use of personal mobile devices in Parliament, perhaps with a handful of exceptions for those who may need to receive important outside communications.

Having to text another party member to ask how you should be voting is just a mockery, and illustrates that people don't really vote for individual MPs, but parties/party leaders, invalidating any real argument for FPTP.

 

[SuspectUsual]

Having to text another party member to ask how you should be voting is just a mockery, and illustrates that people don't really vote for individual MPs, but parties/party leaders, invalidating any real argument for FPTP.

….but pushing the case for mandatory by-elections for defectors

 

[Lewisham2221]

Unsurprisingly, Farage himself didn't actually vote in the Commons last night. All mouth and no trousers.

 

[styles]

Unsurprisingly, Farage himself didn't actually vote. All mouth and no trousers.

Controversially, I don't really see a big issue with this.

Voting in a non-marginal seat under a ridiculous voting system like FPTP often makes zero difference, even if you made voting mandatory.

Russell Brand, despite being an absolute walloper and alleged sex offender, was in my view right when he did the infamous, "I don't vote", interview with Paxman. He wasn't necessarily discouraging people from voting, but highlighting how ineffectual it was. One vote every 5 years using a voting system which effectively benefits a 2+1 party system, is the state appearing to offering democracy without really offering it. Of all the aspects of democracy - votes, petitions, protests, lobbying, community organising, etc - one vote in a ballot box in a safe seat once every 5 years is really not something to obsess about.

 

[Lewisham2221]

Controversially, I don't really see a big issue with this.

Voting in a non-marginal seat under a ridiculous voting system like FPTP often makes zero difference, even if you made voting mandatory.

Russell Brand, despite being an absolute walloper and alleged sex offender, was in my view right when he did the infamous, "I don't vote", interview with Paxman. He wasn't necessarily discouraging people from voting, but highlighting how ineffectual it was. One vote every 5 years using a voting system which effectively benefits a 2+1 party system, is the state appearing to offering democracy without really offering it. Of all the aspects of democracy - votes, petitions, protests, lobbying, community organising, etc - one vote in a ballot box in a safe seat once every 5 years is really not something to obsess about.

Sorry, my fault for not clarifying, I was referring to him voting in the Commons re: the two child benefit cap. Edited original post to clarify!

 

[styles]

Sorry, my fault for not clarifying, I was referring to him voting in the Commons re: the two child benefit cap. Edited original post to clarify!

Oh I see, I agree with you! I'll leave my post as it was as it does address the more general point

 

[BAFRA77]

Well he had one of the worst attendance and voting records in the European Parliament whilst drawing the plump wage and generous expenses account (whether it was used for the correct purpose is another matter) - so that doesn’t surprise me he couldn’t be bothered to represent his constituents - that’s why he wheeled out the spiv Tice in the Commons this afternoon to briefly appear in the Mandelson debate.

He makes up the shortfall enough via his recording of video messages paying homage to South Walian Child Rapists…

A true crusader to protect “are wimmen and kids”

 

[GusB]

In a moment of incredible stupidity, Sky News’s Beth Rigby reports tonight that Braverman and Jenrick had wandered into the Aye lobby filled with Labour MPs to lifting the two child benefit cap.

Rigby reports that “A source tells me they "got on their phones trying to get instructions from Farage as to whether they should be there or not"

"They tried to leave at one point but got trapped as the doors were locked"

A Reform source confirms this happened & says it was a 'genuine mistake' & neither MP registered a vote. All other Reform MPs voted against....

However, as both MPs went through the lobby the votes were officially recorded on the House of Commons register. So Jenrick and Braverman voted with Labour tonight to lift the two child benefit cap.

That certainly made me smile. The idea that two Tories voted to lift the cap is amusing enough, but that it was Braverman and Jenrick makes it even sweeter!

It seems to be a bit of communication failure. Farage had apparently been in favour of scrapping the two-child cap but only for British born parents.

MPs resoundingly vote to scrap two-child benefit cap

It will be further scrutinised by MPs and peers before it can become law, but the Government has said it wants to ditch the two-child limit from April

www.independent.co.uk

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage previously said his party would abolish the policy, but later clarified that would only be for families where both parents were British and working full-time. Last month, he said his party’s MPs would vote against getting rid of the limit.

I must admit that I'm surprised that he'd want both parents to be working full time; shouldn't mummy be at home rearing kids while hubby goes out to do his manly bread-winning?

He's planning to abolish the cap if he gets into power (except for white British parents who work full-time), using the money to cut the price of beer:

Nigel Farage wants to cut price of beer by reinstating two-child benefit cap

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has pledged to reinstate the two-child limit on benefits to pay for a 5p cut off pints of beer to boost pubs.

www.bigissue.com

As Labour’s bill to remove the two-child limit progressed through the House of Commons on Tuesday (3 February), the Reform UK leader laid out his plan to boost Britain’s ailing hospitality sector while plunging 450,000 children back into poverty.

Farage’s five-point plan includes cutting beer duty by 10% which, if landlords passed on the cut, could see the price of pints fall by 5p, according to Reform calculations.

Business rates for pubs – which Labour chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a 15% cut and two-year freeze for recently – would be abolished for four years, Reform said, while VAT would be reduced to 10% for the hospitality sector. National insurance hikes would also be scrapped for pubs.

Reform said the package would cost £2.29bn in its first year, rising to £2.9bn in the fourth year. Farage estimated the package would take £1 off the cost of a pint within two to three years.

But, controversially, the plan would be paid for by reintroducing the two-child limit after Labour axe it – except for people who are “British and work full-time”.

 

[brad465]

Reform UK are being investigated for campaign material of a letter from a "concerned resident" that did not brandish the party logo/banner on it:

Reform faces police investigation over ‘concerned neighbour’ byelection letters

Material distributed in Gorton and Denton did not have legally required imprint stating it was funded by party

www.theguardian.com

Reform UK will face a police investigation in Gorton and Denton after admitting it sent out letters from a “concerned neighbour” which did not state they had been funded and distributed by the party.

Greater Manchester police confirmed it had received a report about the breach of electoral law and said it would investigate. The Electoral Commission said the omission was a matter for the police, stressing that failing “to include an imprint in candidate election material is an offence”.

Dozens of voters in the Gorton and Denton constituency reported receiving letters from a pensioner written in a handwriting-style font on Friday. The letters do not include an imprint saying who they have been funded and distributed by, as required by electoral law.

The author of the letter, Patricia Clegg, describes herself in the mail-outs only as a “local pensioner, 74 years old”.

When contacted by the Guardian, Clegg confirmed she was a member of Reform UK and had been asked to write the letter by the party.
https://www.theguardian.com/comment...bour-gorton-and-denton-byelection-reform-fury
“I was asked to support Reform; would I be willing to do a letter and put my name to it? And I said, ‘Yeah’, and I left the rest to them,” she said, when asked if she had written the letter.

Asked if she was aware that the letter did not have the legally necessary imprint saying it was backed by the party, she said no one had talked to her about that issue.

A Reform spokesperson said the campaign had commissioned the letter which was given to its print contractor “with the full and correct legal imprint, fully compliant with election law” but “an error occurred during the printing process”. Subsequently the legal imprint was “inadvertently removed at the point of printing” without the party’s knowledge.

“At no stage did the campaign know about, authorise or intend the distribution of material without a legal imprint,” the spokesperson said. Hardings Print Solutions, in Middlesex, which printed the letter, said it “took full responsibility” for the error.

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester police confirmed it had received a report about the breach of electoral law on Friday evening. “We will be investigating this,” they said.

The Electoral Commission said all printed material promoting a candidate at an election is required to include an imprint identifying the promoter and printer. “Enforcement of imprint requirements for candidate material is a matter for the police,” a spokesperson said.


The letter stated that the author had previously “voted Labour because Keir Starmer told us things would change for the better. They haven’t.” It added that tax rises “have cost pensioners like me an extra £160 that we cannot afford”.

The author also says they “understand why some neighbours have had enough of Keir Starmer and are thinking of voting Green. But I do not believe the Greens have answers to our problems. They have extreme policies like legalising drugs and letting men use women’s changing rooms. What good would that do people like us?”

Several copies of the letter were posted on local Facebook and WhatsApp groups, with people saying they received them on Friday morning.

One voter, who said they were not affiliated to any party, said they had reported the matter to the Manchester city council’s elections office.

The byelection is expected to be tightly fought between Labour, the Greens and Reform, with all three claiming they are on course to win.

On Friday, a Green party spokesperson accused Reform of “playing dirty”.

“With Reform raking in millions from crypto billionaires and fossil fuel giants, you’d think they’d be able to afford to follow the law,” they said. “But instead they’re playing dirty – because they know te Greens are coming for them in Gorton and Denton.

“The only way to stop Reform’s politics of division and hate is to vote for Hannah Spencer – to elect a Green MP who will fight to lower bills, protect the NHS and rebuild our public services.”

The biggest giveaway the letter might be ominous, is the fact someone wrote a letter in 2026.

 

[Harpo]

There were numerous examples before the last general election of conservative party material that was loathe to be associated with the conservatives, only using its candidates details and only mentioning its tory connection in the legal notices

 

[styles]

Reform UK are being investigated for campaign material of a letter from a "concerned resident" that did not brandish the party logo/banner on it:

Reform faces police investigation over ‘concerned neighbour’ byelection letters

Material distributed in Gorton and Denton did not have legally required imprint stating it was funded by party

www.theguardian.com

Seems like it'll be a quick investigation given the printing company has admitted it was their mistake, and Reform had given them the copy with the required imprint on:

A Reform spokesperson said the campaign had commissioned the letter which was given to its print contractor “with the full and correct legal imprint, fully compliant with election law” but “an error occurred during the printing process”. Subsequently the legal imprint was “inadvertently removed at the point of printing” without the party’s knowledge.

“At no stage did the campaign know about, authorise or intend the distribution of material without a legal imprint,” the spokesperson said. Hardings Print Solutions, in Middlesex, which printed the letter, said it “took full responsibility” for the error.

That'll be a lesson for the local Reform comms person to always check what you're given by the printers before distributing though!

The biggest giveaway the letter might be ominous, is the fact someone wrote a letter in 2026.

It was written by a 74 year old to be fair. My gran would've been about that age if she were still with us, and I bet she'd still be writing us letters!

 

[SuspectUsual]

Seems like it'll be a quick investigation given the printing company has admitted it was their mistake, and Reform had given them the copy with the required imprint on:

Pardon my cynicism but my 50p says the print company were told there was only one way they’d keep the lucrative Reform print contract

 

[brad465]

It was written by a 74 year old to be fair. My gran would've been about that age if she were still with us, and I bet she'd still be writing us letters!

Apologies for not making this clear on my part, but this was meant to be a joke.