Photo: The Times
Arriving in England at the start of spring, I was struck by how quickly the political landscape seemed to shift. On my first day, reports emerged linking Robert Jenrick, a senior figure in the Conservative Party and a recent leadership contender, with Reform UK. Not long after, former Home Secretary Suella Braverman appeared alongside Nigel Farage, showing alignment with the party’s direction. Alongside figures such as Lee Anderson and Nadhim Zahawi, this growing overlap between Reform UK and former Conservative politicians raises an important question. What exactly is Reform becoming?
Reform UK has built much of its identity on criticising the Conservatives, often arguing that the party has played a central role in Britain’s current problems. It has positioned itself as an alternative, especially on the right, aiming to attract voters who are unhappy with mainstream politics. With that in mind, the increasing presence of former Conservative figures in the party can seem a bit contradictory.
At the centre of this shift is Nigel Farage, a figure known for reshaping political movements and tapping into public dissatisfaction. His election as MP for Clacton-on-Sea showed his ability to connect with voters who feel ignored by mainstream parties. 1 Under his leadership, Reform UK seems to be moving away from being just a protest party and towards becoming a more serious political force. Part of that change looks like bringing in people with experience in government.
Photo: The Guardian
A key part of Reform UK’s message has been that Britain is “broken” after years of political failure, much of it blamed on the Conservative Party. 2 “Britain is broken” is something I heard a lot while I was in England, first coming from Jenrick during his defection. 3 This idea helps the party present itself as a fix to what it sees as a wider problem. But as people like Jenrick, Braverman, Anderson and Zahawi, who were part of recent Conservative governments, become linked with Reform UK, that message becomes harder to take at face value. Why is Farage accepting people he and his party suggested were part of the problem?
From one point of view, this could just be political strategy. Parties that want real power often need experienced politicians who understand how government works. Bringing in former Conservatives could make Reform UK look more credible, help it reach more voters, and show it is serious about leading, not just criticising.
But there is another side to it. If Reform UK keeps drawing from the same group of politicians it criticises, how different can it really be? For some people, this might make it look less like a fresh alternative and more like a recycled version of what already existed, or what some argue has already failed.
Photo: Sky News
There is also the question of ideology. Many of the figures joining or aligning with Reform UK, including Suella Braverman, come from the more right-wing side of the Conservative Party. This could mean Reform UK is not changing direction, but instead gathering that part of Conservative politics under a new name.
In the end, what matters is not just who joins Reform UK, but what the party becomes because of it. Does it offer something genuinely different, or is it just a new version of a familiar political setup? As Reform UK grows, this tension between change and continuity will likely define how people see it. Whether it represents something new in British politics, or simply a reshaped version of what came before, will depend on whether it can clearly show a distinct identity.
1 The Guardian, “Nigel Farage’s populist pitch gains traction in Clacton,” https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/article/2024/jun/21/nigel-farage-populist-pitch-gains-traction-clacton
2 BMG Research, “’They broke it, and they can’t fix it’ – The perception of broken Britain is fuelling Reform’s surge,” https://bmgresearch.com/news/they-broke-it-and-they-cant-fix-it-the-perception-of-broken-britain-is-fuelling-reforms-surge/
3 The Times, “Robert Jenrick and the growing Conservative defections to Reform UK,” https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/robert-jenrick-reform-kemi-badenoch-v2jw77kvs
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