Nigel Farage has declared that there is “every chance” of a general election in 2027, as he addressed the Reform UK conference in Birmingham. The party leader said the chaos in government and the resignation of Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner meant the party must be ready to fight a contest two years early.
Speaking without an autocue, Farage criticised Rayner’s actions as “screaming of entitlement” and described the Labour government as worse than the previous Conservative administration. He predicted an internal battle in Labour, saying: “Already they are facing the threat of Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana… the left of Labour will rear its voice and we are about to witness a split in Labour, too.”
Farage announced that Zia Yusuf, the party’s efficiency chief and former chair, would become its new head of policy. He reiterated a core pledge to stop small boats carrying asylum seekers from crossing the Channel within two weeks of taking office, stating: “We will stop the boats and we will detain and deport those who illegally break into our country.”
The Reform leader brought forward his speech by three hours to address the government crisis, walking on stage to rock music and fireworks. Former Conservative cabinet minister Nadine Dorries also spoke, describing Labour as “fracturing and dividing into two” and saying neither main party could save the country.
Farage urged the audience to “make Britain great again” and focused on culture war issues, praising the display of St George’s crosses and union flags as “sticking two fingers up at the establishment”. He also pledged to scrap net zero policies and to “acknowledge publicly the Judeo-Christian culture and heritage that we have”.
Three hecklers were removed from Farage’s closing speech, with one woman carried out and left lying on the ground outside the conference centre. Security also attempted to prevent journalists from filming the incident.
