Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the prime minister, has compared Nigel Farage to the influencer Andrew Tate, labelling the Reform UK leader a “snake oil salesman” who is leading young men down a “dark path”. Jones said Labour would take a more “muscular approach to attacking Reform” rather than simply responding to its statements.
Speaking at a Labour Together fringe event, Jones criticised Reform’s message to young boys, accusing it of offering “hate, division and othering”. He contrasted this with Labour’s plans to give white working-class boys the best chance in life. “Nigel Farage hates the BBC, he hates the NHS, he hates the government, he wants to tear everything down. That is not a positive vision for the future,” Jones said.
When pressed on Farage’s appeal among young men, Jones noted that Tate also has a large following, but said that does not make it acceptable. “I’d put them in similar categories… They are snake oil salesmen that are misleading people and taking them down a dark path for them and for our country,” he added.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting also used the “snake oil salesman” description in his conference speech, criticising Farage for associating with anti-vaccine figures. Streeting referenced a Reform health adviser who claimed the Covid vaccine gave the royal family cancer, calling such lies dangerous and linked to the return of preventable diseases.
Keir Starmer has intensified criticism of Farage in recent days, branding Reform’s indefinite leave to remain policy as “racist”. Farage hit back, saying Starmer is not fit to be prime minister and that the accusation insults voters concerned about immigration.
