Reform is not ready to govern

This article was first published in UnHerd. Everything I publish elsewhere is shared here for free, as a gift to the nation. But if you want the full picture, become a paid subscriber. It’s just a few quid a month; such is the price genius is reduced to.

It’s a well-worn cliché – one I’ve indulged in heavily myself – that British politics follows the American version. The process is inexorable; speed is the only variable.

Last week, Elon Musk stepped down from a 130-day special appointment in the Trump administration, where he had been helping run the Department of Government Efficiency. His departure came shortly after expressing disappointment with the administration’s flagship “Big Beautiful Bill,” a multi-trillion dollar package combining tax cuts and defence spending hikes.

Inspired by the launch of DOGE, Reform took the opportunity to launch their own version after winning control of several councils and mayoralties at the local elections. In a video earlier this week, Party Chairman Zia Yusuf announced that Kent County Council would be the first to face audit by a newly formed team of himself, software engineers, data analysts, and forensic accountants tasked with inspecting local government operations.

But Yusuf did not last 130 days; he did not even last 130 hours. Earlier today it was announced that he had been ‘sidelined’ into the party’s DOGE programme full-time amidst a row with newly-elected MP Sarah Pochin, whom he branded ‘dumb’ for using her first appearance at Prime Minister’s Questions to demand a ban on burqas. Just a few hours later, he announced he had resigned as Reform UK Chairman, announcing on Twitter that he no longer considered working to get the party elected was no longer "a good use of my time". It appears that Yusuf had been unhappy for some time at having his ‘wings clipped’, and that for Yusuf – a Muslim - the burqa ban row was the final straw.

The DOGE initiative, for all its promise, has already fallen victim to internal rows and fragile egos; a microcosm of Reform’s wider dilemma, which shows Reform still have a long way to go in their journey to becoming a serious vehicle for wielding power. In the wake of his political career, Farage has left a trail of promising political careers; in the last year alone Reform has disposed of Rupert Lowe, whose ousting Yusuf played a major part in, and Ben Habib. Although it seems that Yusuf’s departure has been received more in anger than in sorrow, it still shows that talent retention – even amongst a small group – is a serious problem for Reform.

One of the biggest problems the party faces is in developing a serious policy platform that allows it to channel populist energy into a practical political project. As adept as Reform has been at capitalising on populist anger, it has yet to develop the policy discipline or internal coherence required to convert that energy into an actionable programme for government; nature, abhorring a vacuum, has sought to fill it, creating a natural point of contention between party members.

A credible policy offering is the primary barrier Reform face in taking the step from populist ragers to a government-in-waiting, yet developing that may requires overcoming what seems to be Nigel Farage’s greatest weakness; the promotion of & delegation to talented people. Whilst Reform can claim over 300,000 members, it has few figureheads; of it’s 5 MPs, only two – Farage and Deputy Richard Tice - are known. The party’s lack of intellectual and organisational depth is compounded by this dependence on a narrow set of personalities.

Reform’s central weakness is not electoral strategy, but an inability to foster and empower capable allies. Instead of building a cadre, Farage seems increasingly content to surround himself with hangers-on and stunt candidates. The rumoured recruitment of c-list celebrities - such as Love Island contestant Ollie Williams, boxer Derek Chisora and ex-SAS tv presenter Ant Middleton - suggests Reform is veering toward spectacle rather than substance.

Reform may have cracked the code for capturing disillusioned voters, but until it figures out how to turn that into a functioning political machine, it will always be what it always has been: a protest movement with a party logo.