Farage emboldened by Trump’s victory – but whether he can replicate that success remains to be seen
Fresh from Donald Trump’s victory party at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, it is an emboldened Nigel Farage who meets us at his latest Reform conference in Newport, South Wales.
“What a win!” He chirps, as the cameras are set up.
To be clear: Nigel Farage is not on the brink of becoming the next British prime minister, but there are undoubtedly parallels between the Reform leader and the US president-elect.
Politics latest: Ex-Blair aide is new national security adviser
Both men are trying to tap into disillusioned “left behind” voters, both men are cutting through in rural communities and former industry heartlands. There are red MAGA hats on show at the Reform conference on Friday.
But once the cameras are rolling, and I ask about criticism that he is not spending enough time in his constituency of Clacton, Mr Farage’s mood shifts.
He is undeniably testy. “How much time does Keir Starmer spend in his constituency?” he shoots back, when I ask about missed budget votes while he was in the US.
I remind him he is not yet prime minister.
“I have bought a house in Clacton! What more do you want!”
Behind the scenes though, someone close to Mr Farage tells me he is struggling with the balance of being a constituency MP, leading Reform and pre-agreed (paid) commitments in the US.
“I honour the commitments, they were already there” he tells me, “I’ve taken far less on for next year”.
Nigel Farage at the Reform UK Welsh Conference at the Celtic Manor hotel in Newport. Pic: PA
After our interview, a source close to him said: “Nigel has been to Clacton more than 10 times since being elected. Has kept his promise to have a property in the constituency. Writes a weekly column for the Clacton Gazette (10 weeks in a row). And is having two further visits next week.”
Another interesting, and at times uncomfortable, part of the interview is when I ask about Donald Trump’s position on Ukraine.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Trump shouts out to ‘friend’ Nigel Farage
Read More:
Starmer needs to ‘suck it up’ and invite Trump on a state visit
Farage backtracks on claim he was told not to hold in-person surgeries
Mr Farage tells me there need to be “concessions on both sides”.
When I push on whether that means Ukrainians making territorial concessions he tells me: “I’m not playing your silly game.”
He may well be wary of the backlash he faced in the election campaign for suggesting the West “provoked” Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by expanding eastwards. He did say the war was “of course” President Putin’s fault.
But in truth it is not Mr Farage’s foreign, but his domestic policy that is what has brought people here on Friday.
The NHS, cost of living and immigration are the issues that come up again and again, and people here think the Reform leader has the answers: “He is just different,” one member says.
The Reform party clearly spots an opportunity in Wales. It won 16.9% of the vote share here, and launched its manifesto (or what it calls its “contract”) in Merthyr Tydfil.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Despite winning no seats, they received a greater share of the vote than the Liberal Democrats and Plaid Cymru.
Mr Farage’s team tell me he could win “20-plus” seats at the Senedd elections in 2026.
The elections for the Welsh parliament are part of Reform’s masterplan, a spring board for more coverage and ultimately more power.
After the interviews he bounces up for his seat and heads out to address the conference rally. The thousand or so members here can’t contain their excitement: for all the warm up acts, they’ve come here for one man.
In the confines of the Newport conference hall, Nigel Farage is preaching to the choir. His base has always been solid, whether he can really replicate something similar to Trump’s success is a very different question.
Politics
Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell tells Nigel Farage ‘kneejerk’ migrant deportation plan won’t solve problem
The Archbishop of York has told Sky News the UK should resist Reform’s “kneejerk” plan for the mass deportation of migrants, telling Nigel Farage he is not offering any “long-term solution”.
Stephen Cottrell said in an interview with Trevor Phillips he has “every sympathy” with people who are concerned about asylum seekers coming to the country illegally.
But he criticised the plan announced by Reform on Tuesday to deport 600,000 people, which would be enabled by striking deals with the Taliban and Iran, saying it will not “solve the problem”.
Mr Cottrell is currently acting head of the Church of England while a new Archbishop of Canterbury is chosen.
Pic: Jacob King/PA Wire
The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell in 2020.
File pic: PA
Phillips asked him: “What’s your response to the people who are saying the policy should be ‘you land here, unlawfully, you get locked up and you get deported straight away. No ifs, no buts’?”
Mr Cottrell said he would tell them “you haven’t solved the problem”, adding: “You’ve just put it somewhere else and you’ve done nothing to address the issue of what brings people to this country.
“And so if you think that’s the answer, you will discover in due course that all you have done is made the problem worse.
“Don’t misunderstand me, I have every sympathy with those who find this difficult, every sympathy – as I do with those living in poverty.
“But… we should actively resist the kind of isolationist, short term kneejerk ‘send them home’.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
What do public make of Reform’s plans?
Nigel Farage at the launch of Reform UK’s plan to deport asylum seekers. Pic: PA
Asked if that was his message to the Reform leader, he said: “Well, it is. I mean, Mr Farage is saying the things he’s saying, but he is not offering any long-term solution to the big issues which are convulsing our world, which lead to this. And, I see no other way.”
You can watch the full interview on Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips on Sky News from 8.30am
Mr Farage, the MP for Clacton, was asked at a news conference this week what he would say if Christian leaders opposed his plan.
“Whoever the Christian leaders are at any given point in time, I think over the last decades, quite a few of them have been rather out of touch, perhaps with their own flock,” he said.
“We believe that what we’re offering is right and proper, and we believe for a political party that was founded around the slogan of family, community, country that we are doing right by all of those things, with these plans we put forward today.”
Sky News has approached Mr Farage for comment.
Crypto transactions are vulnerable to warrant-free surveillance, making privacy-enhancing tools essential for blockchain’s future.
A former BJP legislator and 11 police officials have been convicted for the 2018 abduction of a Surat businessman in a plot to seize over 750 Bitcoin.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment11 months agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024