How Reform UK could reshape the election – and the Tories

Nigel Farage might not be standing for parliament but his party can still change the future of Britain’s right, says Sean O’Grady

Richard Tice outlining Reform UK’s plans to ‘Save Britain’ one Tory vote at a time (PA)

Richard Tice, leader of Reform UK, says his party will contest all 632 seats in England, Wales and Scotland at the next election. His avowed aim is to take votes from all the other parties but there’s no doubt Reform will mostly attract disaffected Conservatives, costing Rishi Sunak some parliamentary seats.

In the past, Tice – and his party’s president, Nigel Farage – have talked about their ambition to destroy the Conservatives. It stands in contrast to the approach taken in 2019 by the Brexit Party, Reform’s predecessor, which stood down in Tory-held seats, ostensibly to get Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal implemented. Tice says a win for Labour would mean “Starmergeddon”. Farage was absent from the party’s new year event.

Will the Reform UK strategy work?