Nigel Farage has unveiled a raft of populist pledges, massive tax cuts and £140bn in spending commitments in a Reform UK manifesto that economists said did “not add up”. The Conservative party, which has struggled to counter the growing Reform threat, accused Farage of being part of a “great entertainment machine” who was not somebody who could govern the country.
Labour strategists believe Reform, which held its manifesto launch in the opposition’s south Wales heartlands, does not represent a serious risk because the party is so poorly organised and is likely to have seen its vote squeezed by the Tories on election day. Farage, however, said he wants Reform UK to establish a “bridgehead” in parliament with a view to a full assault in five years’ time, suggesting he could be in No 10 following the next general election.
As he launched his party’s set of election promises, Farage said: “We are not pretending that we are going to win this general election. This election is for our party, and for me, the first important step on the road to 2029. Our ambition is to establish a bridgehead in parliament, and to become a real opposition to a Labour government.”
Reform UK’s plans imply spending an extra £141bn a year on tax cuts and other policy pledges, paid for by £156bn of savings in public spending and an assumption of increased tax revenue from higher economic growth. But the Institute for Fiscal Studies thinktank said the party’s plans were based on “extremely optimist assumptions” about growth and the sums “do not add up”, meaning the manifesto as a whole was “problematic”.
Reform’s plans for tax cuts included raising the minimum threshold of income tax to £20,000 a year, abolishing stamp duty, scrapping VAT on energy bills and getting rid of inheritance tax for all estates under £2m. The manifesto also included axing the net zero strategy, introducing life imprisonment for convicted drug dealers, a “freeze” on non-essential immigration “to protect our culture and identity” and 20% tax relief on all private healthcare and insurance.
Cabinet minister Michael Gove dismissed as “ridiculous” Farage’s claim that he could make a bid for No 10 in 2029, telling Times Radio that the British public would go for a more authoritative leader from the left or the right. “He is part of a great entertainment machine. He is not someone who can govern this country. Reform is a giant ego trip, not a serious programme of alternative change.”
