‘We’re pretty bullish’: Farage’s plan to transform politics

‘We’ve had enough of living in two-tier Britain,’ bellows Nigel Farage to cheers from an 800-strong crowd at Chester’s Crowne Plaza Hotel, where he is holding court. ‘There is not a single person on that Labour frontbench who’s ever worked in private business,’ the Reform leader declares. ‘So, is it any wonder they’re making such a Horlicks of it?’

Chester is the sixth stop on Farage’s new year tour, which was initially intended to sound a steady drumbeat in the lead-up to May’s local elections. Since those plans were made, however, Labour has announced a devolution shake-up that could allow various councils to delay their elections by a year. ‘It’s pretty full on,’ Farage says, when we meet on the sidelines of the event. ‘Last night was a huge disappointment being in the south-east, where the whole lot are being cancelled.’

‘We stopped at a service station and all these kids were coming up for selfies,’ says Farage

Despite this setback, Reform is becoming a major headache for the two main parties. After kicking out the Tories six months ago, voters have quickly turned against the new Labour government. Who will they turn to next? Perhaps the answer is an insurgent party promising to stick it to both sides. A YouGov voting-intention poll this week put the Tories in third place on 22 per cent and Reform on 25 – just one point behind Labour. As the polling guru Sir John Curtice explains: ‘Reform is now beginning to pick up some of Labour’s vote.’

‘I am more convinced than ever that we will be in Downing Street after the next election,’ says one optimistic Reform staffer. In the north-west, Reform hopes to oust several members of Keir Starmer’s cabinet at the next general election. The first step is the Lancashire council elections; the party has recently won a couple of by-elections in the area.