Nigel Farage has said he would be willing to lead a merged Reform-Conservative party after the election as a “national opposition” of the “centre Right in this country”. The Telegraph has more.
The Reform party leader said he could not lead the Tories as it “currently is” but predicted a new party is likely to emerge after the General Election.
Asked if he could rule out one day leading the Conservative Party, Mr. Farage told LBC this morning: “I think something new is going to emerge on the centre Right, I don’t know what it is called.
“But do I think I am capable of leading a national opposition to a Labour Party with a big majority where I can stand up and hold them to account on issues? Yes.”
Asked if he would be happy to lead a merged party, he replied: “Yes.”
He added: “They [the Tories] may be dead. They may well be dead. This may well be the end of their journey. I would be prepared to lead the centre Right in this country.”
Worth reading in full.
Interestingly, Spectator Editor Fraser Nelson wrote this week that Farage’s ‘manifesto’ is basically what he thinks the Conservative manifesto should be – on the NHS, tax, climate and immigration. Clearly Reform is capturing something about what those across the Right want but that the Conservative party, riven by divisions between its Right wing and ‘One Nation’ flanks, has been unable to deliver.
But with the Tories parachuting its Left wing into the safe(ish) seats, how many Conservative MPs who survive the election will want to team up with Reform? I suspect the old party may split after the election, with the surviving Right linking up with Farage and the Left of the party continuing as a Lib Dem-like rump. Chances are though that it’s the Right who will have to leave – the Left has most control of the upper echelons of the party so will probably be able to keep the brand, despite ‘Conservative’ being an increasingly obvious misnomer for their beliefs. The grassroots will be deeply unhappy about that, of course, so expect some serious fireworks over the direction of the party in the coming months. Or will the Tory Left finally accept the truth about who they are and team up with the Lib Dems? At this point, what comes after the deluge is anybody’s guess.
Stop Press: Reform has overtaken the Conservatives in the latest YouGov poll, with 19% compared to the Tories’ 18%. “This is the inflection point,” says Farage. “The only wasted vote now is a Conservative vote. We are the challengers to Labour and we’re on our way.” The Telegraph has more.
To join in with the discussion please make a donation to The Daily Sceptic.
Profanity and abuse will be removed and may lead to a permanent ban.
It might depend on the definition of a Party. However, this story reminds me of what happened when the SDP merged with the Liberals, which became, err, the Liberals.
I loved the treatment Spitting Image gave to David Owen and David Steel over the ‘merger’. I was hoping to link to a YouTube clip of it but couldn’t find it.
Thanks for that blast from the past! Here’s a clip I just found from the BBC. They include the “merger” bit at 0:56 minutes:
Spitting Image makers on David Steel satirical puppet – BBC News
Good find!
It was fun to see Spitting Image again after decades. Classic! Thanks for recommending it.
Reform are not standing in Sheffield Hallam but the SDP are.
“Centre Right”? Who needs it? Why are people so afraid of the term “Right Wing” in politics?
The dictionary definition just means “Conservative”, wanting to protect the traditional culture and historic ethnic identity of the nation.
“Far Right” just means “Very Conservative”. It does not mean fascist or Nazi dictatorship.
The term “centre right” is exactly what the Globalists promised decades ago, with their vow to drag every political party toward the centre, resulting in a kind of Weedy Wet Liberal Utopia— essentially Pol Pot, Stalin & Mao in drag.
A ’Far Right’ Conservative Party would rid us of all the vestiges of Socialism which are: sovereignty of State over the individual, collectivism, the welfare State, NHS, State run public services, State capitalism, intervention in the market using tax, subsidies and regulation, restricted trade.
Centrist Parties are: I Cannot Believe It’s Really Not Socialism.
Completely agree
New names for the Conservative rump: Un-Reformed Conservatives? Conservative Democratic Unionist Party? SDP?
And for the reverse takeover: Reformed Conservatives? Conservative Reform?
As an aside: Have you noticed how very anti-democratic countries like to include ‘Democratic’ in their official country names?
I think SDP – Socialist Duplicitous Party.
Farage is leading Reform. Either he makes a success of it or not. If he thinks success depends upon recruiting failed, has been Tories he’s a slate short.
Indeed – though there are a few Tory MPs who might actually be conservatives who may jump ship, especially once it becomes clear that the Tories are finished electorally for a generation.
I don’t agree tof. There are certainly no more than perhaps ten or so in the current H of C that would be acceptable transfer candidates.
The vast majority of the present roll call deserve to be in prison at least and realistically facing charges of treason. Obviously that scenario is for the birds but I would enthusiasticaly argue that anyone who has served time in the last Parliament should be forbidden from standing again on the entirely provable grounds that they failed to do their jobs and indeed acted against the rightful expectations of those they claimed to represent.
Oh I agree 100% – I was certainly only thinking of a handful – basically those that started opposing lockdowns early on and those that have more recently been vocal in pushing the case for excess deaths to be looked into.
The whiole discussion is redundant and essentially a clinging to a ghost reality. The idea of conservativism needs to be based upon something. You might say that it is English freedom in all of its manifestations but we have watched for a century our overlords not only rob us of freedoms little by little but also a hundred years of a scientifically crafted propaganda model designed to make us poison ourselves..This is the only reality that matters.
On the one hand it might be better to not reveal that kind of hypothetical stuff, but on the other it might mean that those who normally vote conservative need not shy away from voting for Reform fearing they are just handing a big majority to Labour. Because now they know that there might be a merging of Con/Ref to dent that Labour majority.
Nigel says just how it is!
BBC Franchise legitimising violence against Farage.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZMmOEgIrp0
Nothing is going to change in terms of the agenda. Sunak was informed that we are already at war with Russia and that in August there is going to be major NATO escalation. He didn’t fancy the job for obvious reasons. I think the money elite assume that young folk would be more happy to follow Starmer into battle than Sunak. One hopes not. The course of this country is already set in terms of being the biggest player against Russia. Look at what the Russians say, they mention the British more than anyone in terms of describing the enemy. I think it is going to be very difficult to stop this war.
“I think the money elite assume that young folk would be more happy to follow Starmer into battle than Sunak.”
That is ridiculous. The current in-uniform armed forces might go to war as a result of their training and loyalty and esprit de corps but there is no way would the Forces be able to recruit for a war with Russia. Our youth are deliberately poorly educated but they are not all thick.
In terms of a false flag event you may be on to something. I too suspect something big is going to be launched against us before Christmas and it won’t be just Billy’s new brew.
XTC Plans for Nigel:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-X3Wy-svIY
Nice one Ron. A great band and a great track.
You cannot win a missile war with Russia. In terms of air warfare the RAF would be overwhlemed within a few days if not hours. They have whole towns and universities and research centres that have been developing missile technology continously. The British nuclear deterren tis based on Trident. Recent attempts to launch these missiles have ended in failure. My view is that it is suicidal for the British to go to total war with Russia but that is what is on the cards next month. Politicians don’t know about this stuff so maybe if enough people conact them with the same message then perhaps it can be averted or slowed down.
Slightly off-topic:
‘My father would be turning in his grave!’ – Starmer fumes at ‘disrespect’ from TV debate audience who laughed at his dad’s job: ‘It hit a nerve’ GB News
This is faux outrage or he is thicker than I thought. Or is it just me who got the joke or worse yet – that what I ‘got’ wasn’t the joke?
The Sky audience were not laughing at his dad for being a man who worked in a factory. The joke was that his dad was a toolmaker – and that Sir Keir is the tool he made (link provided for people who don’t use colloquial English).
Additional note for Germans: The Brits are allowed to take the piss out of our Government and State apparatus and aspirants.
And / or some of the audience knew he was lying. Kneel’s dad owned a tool making factory.
Some parents have a lot to answer for with their ‘creations’…
Any political force requires a party political history and a movement behind it. There won’t be any movement one way or another in terms of the mainstream stage. Obvioously Farage can visit places like Clacton and try to mount a populist response but in terms of our future the British establishment has clearly defined goals for the next few months and those goals involve victory in Russia and Gaza and Taiwan. It doesn’t matter whether you subscribe to these wars or not this is going to be your history and culture for at least the next ten years. If you have a child then give him a tin hat and gun and get him doing target practice in your back garden.
Shock. I’m still renting out crowns btw
A reformed Tory party? I can’t make my mind up about this fella – is he trying to woo voters – or put ‘em off?