All articles tagged with #reform uk
In a Gorton and Denton by-election, the Green Party won a seat Labour had long held, delivering a symbolic setback to Keir Starmer and highlighting a broader realignment as Greens and Reform UK gain ground amid Labour's centrist stance ahead of upcoming local elections.
Former plumber Hannah Spencer won Manchester's Gorton and Denton for the Green Party in a three-way race against Reform UK and Labour, making her the Greens' fifth MP and signaling rising eco-populist momentum as Labour faces scrutiny and Reform UK remains a national force ahead of the 2029 general election.
Labour, Reform UK and the Green Party are contesting the Gorton and Denton by-election in a tight three-way race that could boost Keir Starmer or signal momentum for Reform and the Greens, while by-elections of this kind do not change Parliament's arithmetic.
Labour faces a high-stakes by-election in Gorton and Denton, seen as a test of Keir Starmer's leadership amid a Reform UK challenge and internal party tensions. With 11 candidates and results expected around 4am after a 7am–10pm polling window, the outcome could either boost Labour's position ahead of May elections or energize Nigel Farage's Reform UK, signaling voter sentiment about Starmer's leadership.
Nigel Farage condemned his former Reform colleague Rupert Lowe’s new Restore Britain party, dismissing a poll suggesting Lowe could reach 10% and reaffirming Reform UK as the country’s only credible centre-right option. He criticised Lowe’s positions on mass deportations, warned against dealing with those he sees as dishonourable, and noted Elon Musk’s potential support while doubting Lowe’s national appeal.
BBC reporters depict Horden, a former mining town in east Durham, as a community left poorer and more isolated since the pits closed, with boarded-up streets, absentee landlords and rising child poverty; residents lash out at Westminster and Labour, while Reform UK gains ground amid frustration over Brexit funding cuts and lack of local investment, even as regeneration plans and community efforts attempt to reverse the decline.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage unveils a five-point plan to “save Britain’s pubs,” including cutting VAT to 10%, scrapping the hospitality NIC rise, reducing beer duty by 10%, and phasing out pub business rates, funded by social-security changes such as reinstating a two‑child cap on universal credit, aiming to capitalize on pub distress and Labour’s policy gaps.
Reform UK says it is vetting Welsh Senedd candidates with social-media checks and background reviews, a process described as brutal and intrusive by a party councillor. The party has scrutinized decades of online history, leading to the exclusion of some potentially good candidates for past posts, including a pattern seen in 2024 when 12 Reform candidates were dropped after their past comments. No Welsh leadership or list of candidates has been officially announced yet, and rumours about leadership are not official.
UK Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch apologised for a party statement referencing Suella Braverman's mental health after her defection to Reform UK, calling the remark wrong and retracting it; Braverman criticised the line, while Badenoch described defectors as 'drama queens' in a later speech amid a wave of Tory MPs joining Reform UK and ongoing debates over centrism and immigration.
Former home secretary Suella Braverman defects from the Conservative Party to Reform UK, saying the Tories are too weak and centrist. Her move follows other right-wing defections and signals Reform’s growing momentum.
Reform UK has unveiled GB News host and academic-activist Matt Goodwin as its candidate for the Gorton and Denton by-election, triggered by Andrew Gwynne’s resignation for health reasons. Goodwin casts the race as a rebuke of the establishment and Keir Starmer, pledging to give local voters a voice in Parliament. The by-election is set for 26 February, with Labour’s leadership and NEC decisions already drawing scrutiny after Burnham’s aborted bid to stand and long-standing tensions ahead of the vote.
About 50 Labour MPs signed a letter to Keir Starmer objecting to the NEC's ruling blocking Andy Burnham from standing in the Gorton and Denton by-election, saying the move could hand Reform UK a boost and that Burnham might be Labour's best chance to win the seat; Starmer defended focusing resources on other elections, while Burnham would need to return to Parliament to mount a leadership challenge; the NEC decision comes after Labour won the seat in 2024 by around 13,000 votes, with Reform UK and Greens expected to challenge.
Former Conservative Home Secretary Suella Braverman joined Reform UK, the fourth Tory MP to defect since the last election and the third this month, as Nigel Farage builds momentum against the Conservatives. Braverman criticised her former party's record and said she is ending “Tory betrayal and lies,” with analysts weighing how many more MPs might follow and what it means for upcoming by-elections and Labour’s position in the national conversation.
Robert Jenrick defects from the Conservatives to Reform UK after being sacked, raising questions about loyalty, timing, and whether Reform can unite the right without splitting the Tory vote, potentially sharpening the contest on the UK’s political right.
In a dramatic internal confrontation, shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick was sacked by Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch amid claims he planned to defect to Reform UK, underscoring a splintering of the British right and a looming realignment within the Tory ranks ahead of elections.