Good thinking. Jenrick very sound on the radio this morning. He brooks no babble on immigration, island of strangers, tax issues, anti-social behaviour, it appears to come from the heart. The boy Dixon may well be right again.
Good article. I’ve had my doubts about Reform for a while, although they do seem to tick many boxes. I’m not wholly impressed by Zia Yusuf. It also bothers me that Nigel has managed to fall out with Rupert Lowe and Ben Habib, both of whom impress me greatly. A Tory Party led by Jenrick that contained Rupert Lowe might be enough to sway me, but Jenrick would have to lose a lot of Tory wets. There’s still time to decide…
I’m hovering between Reform & the Conservatives at the moment, I did vote Reform at the GE & in the recent council elections. I do worry that Farage couldn’t manage a government, he seems very thin skinned and could see a Reform government collapse, what comes next, a Corbyn/Green alliance?
I’m waiting to see what happens but Jenrick does look good & is making the right noises, watch this space.
They got rid of Ben Habib who was trying to bring some semblance of governance to Reform and they were threatened by the presence of Rupert Lowe who IMHO would make an excellent PM. In contrast, I don't think Farage would be up to the job: he's a great campaigner but I just don't think he's got what it takes to be PM, I don't think he'd be suited to the day to day grind of actual government or that it would interest him. He's a showman, a one man band, not a chairman of a cabinet or leader of a government.
I paid my twenty quid to join Rupert Lowe's Restore movement - an interesting concept. I think it gives him flexibility in the time between now and the next GE to decide where he can be most effective. As his movement gathers momentum, he'll be able to see more clearly which party he might join, where he'd find common ground with similarly minded people or whether he should stand as an independent.
My dream scenario would be that he gathers enough support for others to see him as a potentially excellent PM and for him to lead the Tories to victory
I've always voted Tory but lost all hope when Kemi became Leader. I've spent the last few months wishing Rob Jenrick would join Reform. After hearing that Matt Goodwin will be joining Reform I was quite excited at the prospect of them really getting their act together but seeing Matt stating recently that he didn't agree with the 1 in 1 out idea yet Farage stating that he thought it was a great idea, I am now completely confused - do Reform really know what their policies are? There seem to be too many questions where Reform are concerned! Like you Nick - I'm wondering where to put my X.
Just listened to your last two podcasts and now, reading this, find I am always 100% aligned with your thoughts on political matters. It would be nice if Jenrick took over the party and took in all our favourite characters on the right - unite the right as they say - and got rid of the wets with all seats up for re-selection. Kemi is too intransigent and I don't know what it is exactly but I find her uninspiring as a leader.
Can't disagree with any of that, Nick. Farage is doing his best to steer his party towards a kind of golf-club-bonhomie-with-bloke-in-the-pub centrism. While I would like to believe it's a strategy to gain votes by appealing to normies, it somehow seems to ring horribly true with the real Farage. I would be very interested to hear what Matt Goodwin thinks about this. He would probably chime with the 'strategy for votes' idea, and that Farage has always been a campaigner against immigration even when it earned him the vitriol and contempt from the left and the establishment, so it must be real. But it seems that, having now successfully rocked the political boat to such an extent that he is now seen as a serious challenger for the PM spot, he has settled back into what he always was, a warmed-up Thatcher tribute act..
I totally agree with your assessment of Reform as it’s exactly how I feel about them ever since they kicked out Rupert Lowe. It would be a bit harder for me to vote Conservative due to a feeling of betrayal. I’ve voted for them in most elections, been a member multiple times (I voted for Boris as leader even though I did say I didn’t trust him) and even stood as a council candidate a couple of times. I left over what they did in the scamdemic and vowed never to vote for them again, so it would take an awful lot for me to forgive the betrayal enough for me to hold my nose and vote for them again. But as it stands, I wouldn’t vote Reform again so I feel politically homeless. I joined Restore Britain, so it’ll be interesting to see where that goes.
I too quit over BoJo's handling of the scamdemic. I could see it was all lies from the start and felt angry that my intelligence was being insulted. I imagined I would never trust the Tories again.
I then turned to Reform, pitched up at the first meeting of my local branch and volunteered as Treasurer. As Nick knows as I've said all this more than once, I started to question what was going on within the party nationally as well as within the branch. When you've got a chair and vice chair who were both candidates at the GE last year (neither got elected) that can't organise a branch meeting, it does lead to questions of competence should they ever get elected. They didn't like my questioning how things were being done, I voiced my concerns with the Regional Organiser who asked me to stay on the basis that it was early days and they needed people like me who were experienced in finance and admin. I later learnt that expressing these concerns has been labelled gossiping behind their backs. I was frozen out and resigned and then was badmouthed - disloyal, never ant good etc etc. Never mind that I have over 40 years experience in financial management.
When Rupert Lowe went public about the way he'd been treated I saw similarities with my own experience of Reform.
So, once again politically homeless, I've been casting around for ideas and people who accord with my views and I see much to like about Rupert and Ben Habib. I'm not sure about Jenrick, but if Rupert were to throw in his lot with a Tory party led by Jenrick, I would happily vote Tory again
I think Kemi is starting to find her groove. With Jenrick as an attack dog, they could potentially make quite a powerful pairing. However that requires a purge of the LibDems (as recently suggested by Lord Frost).
Speaking of the LibDems, they did have some decent policies back in the day - EU Referendum (they naively thought it would settle the issue in favour of the EU), no tuition fees, £10k personal tax allowance when it was down at about £6k, so no need to feel daft about voting for them Nick.
Really hard to see at this stage how best to ensure as big a Labour defeat as possible. Restore may well offer a policy platform that could in most part be adopted by the Tory’s, I’ll wait and see what happens. I care very deeply about freedom of speech so who will make the most running with this particular baton!!
I live in Bristol Central, so can only vote strategically now. Currently the Greens reign supreme locally and nationally.
I don't 100% rule out voting for the tories, though it would be hard to trust them. 2029 is a long way away. I should probably put money in a swear box every time I say that. For example, they might split and send their Lib Dems off to Alton Towers.
It's difficult to predict how things will develop in the next few years. I don't have much confidence in Jenrick. However, I suppose I'm currently inclined to go with what Lowe supports even if it's them. But then I'm in one of the few seats that is likely safe conservative even if they go down to 20 seats.
For me, the Tories need to get rid of the 2/3 of their MPs who would be happier in with the Lib Dems. Reform appear to be going the wrong direction, more left wing, an Everyman party, that will eventually appeal to no one.
Jenrick can be the Leader of the Tories but his party will drag him down; see Liz Truss for reference.
Someone needs to make some tough decisions on welfare, immigration, taxes; it's not clear who that will be.
Farage may think he can say anything to get elected and then do something different in power. Unfortunately this is what Labour and the Tories have been doing for decades, and why so many of us have lost faith in politics and politicians. Vote Social Democratic Party if you are fortunate enough to have a candidate in your constituency.
Voting Tory is like excusing an abusive partner insisting they've changed this time. "I know I said this last time, and the time before.. and the time before that but this time I really mean it." First they'd have to get rid of the liberal democrats who comprise two thirds of the party, and have insinuated themselves into every aspect of it. Then they would have to find a cabinet of social, moral and economic conservatives who actually believed in something, and would hold out for it against the whips. Most 1922 types still believe Boris is a conservative and will arise from the shire to save them in their hour of need. Look what they did to Bridgen, and tell me they wouldn't do the same all over again.
Over promised to build a base of support, then provide just enough red meat to maintain the easily led flock. Reading Pete North’s dissection of them, there’s so little substance and the body count is rising. Ben, Wolfe, Lowe, Murdough, Lotus Eater boys etc etc.
Good thinking. Jenrick very sound on the radio this morning. He brooks no babble on immigration, island of strangers, tax issues, anti-social behaviour, it appears to come from the heart. The boy Dixon may well be right again.
Good article. I’ve had my doubts about Reform for a while, although they do seem to tick many boxes. I’m not wholly impressed by Zia Yusuf. It also bothers me that Nigel has managed to fall out with Rupert Lowe and Ben Habib, both of whom impress me greatly. A Tory Party led by Jenrick that contained Rupert Lowe might be enough to sway me, but Jenrick would have to lose a lot of Tory wets. There’s still time to decide…
I’m hovering between Reform & the Conservatives at the moment, I did vote Reform at the GE & in the recent council elections. I do worry that Farage couldn’t manage a government, he seems very thin skinned and could see a Reform government collapse, what comes next, a Corbyn/Green alliance?
I’m waiting to see what happens but Jenrick does look good & is making the right noises, watch this space.
They got rid of Ben Habib who was trying to bring some semblance of governance to Reform and they were threatened by the presence of Rupert Lowe who IMHO would make an excellent PM. In contrast, I don't think Farage would be up to the job: he's a great campaigner but I just don't think he's got what it takes to be PM, I don't think he'd be suited to the day to day grind of actual government or that it would interest him. He's a showman, a one man band, not a chairman of a cabinet or leader of a government.
I paid my twenty quid to join Rupert Lowe's Restore movement - an interesting concept. I think it gives him flexibility in the time between now and the next GE to decide where he can be most effective. As his movement gathers momentum, he'll be able to see more clearly which party he might join, where he'd find common ground with similarly minded people or whether he should stand as an independent.
My dream scenario would be that he gathers enough support for others to see him as a potentially excellent PM and for him to lead the Tories to victory
I've always voted Tory but lost all hope when Kemi became Leader. I've spent the last few months wishing Rob Jenrick would join Reform. After hearing that Matt Goodwin will be joining Reform I was quite excited at the prospect of them really getting their act together but seeing Matt stating recently that he didn't agree with the 1 in 1 out idea yet Farage stating that he thought it was a great idea, I am now completely confused - do Reform really know what their policies are? There seem to be too many questions where Reform are concerned! Like you Nick - I'm wondering where to put my X.
Just listened to your last two podcasts and now, reading this, find I am always 100% aligned with your thoughts on political matters. It would be nice if Jenrick took over the party and took in all our favourite characters on the right - unite the right as they say - and got rid of the wets with all seats up for re-selection. Kemi is too intransigent and I don't know what it is exactly but I find her uninspiring as a leader.
You must be very smart.
Can't disagree with any of that, Nick. Farage is doing his best to steer his party towards a kind of golf-club-bonhomie-with-bloke-in-the-pub centrism. While I would like to believe it's a strategy to gain votes by appealing to normies, it somehow seems to ring horribly true with the real Farage. I would be very interested to hear what Matt Goodwin thinks about this. He would probably chime with the 'strategy for votes' idea, and that Farage has always been a campaigner against immigration even when it earned him the vitriol and contempt from the left and the establishment, so it must be real. But it seems that, having now successfully rocked the political boat to such an extent that he is now seen as a serious challenger for the PM spot, he has settled back into what he always was, a warmed-up Thatcher tribute act..
I totally agree with your assessment of Reform as it’s exactly how I feel about them ever since they kicked out Rupert Lowe. It would be a bit harder for me to vote Conservative due to a feeling of betrayal. I’ve voted for them in most elections, been a member multiple times (I voted for Boris as leader even though I did say I didn’t trust him) and even stood as a council candidate a couple of times. I left over what they did in the scamdemic and vowed never to vote for them again, so it would take an awful lot for me to forgive the betrayal enough for me to hold my nose and vote for them again. But as it stands, I wouldn’t vote Reform again so I feel politically homeless. I joined Restore Britain, so it’ll be interesting to see where that goes.
I too quit over BoJo's handling of the scamdemic. I could see it was all lies from the start and felt angry that my intelligence was being insulted. I imagined I would never trust the Tories again.
I then turned to Reform, pitched up at the first meeting of my local branch and volunteered as Treasurer. As Nick knows as I've said all this more than once, I started to question what was going on within the party nationally as well as within the branch. When you've got a chair and vice chair who were both candidates at the GE last year (neither got elected) that can't organise a branch meeting, it does lead to questions of competence should they ever get elected. They didn't like my questioning how things were being done, I voiced my concerns with the Regional Organiser who asked me to stay on the basis that it was early days and they needed people like me who were experienced in finance and admin. I later learnt that expressing these concerns has been labelled gossiping behind their backs. I was frozen out and resigned and then was badmouthed - disloyal, never ant good etc etc. Never mind that I have over 40 years experience in financial management.
When Rupert Lowe went public about the way he'd been treated I saw similarities with my own experience of Reform.
So, once again politically homeless, I've been casting around for ideas and people who accord with my views and I see much to like about Rupert and Ben Habib. I'm not sure about Jenrick, but if Rupert were to throw in his lot with a Tory party led by Jenrick, I would happily vote Tory again
I think Kemi is starting to find her groove. With Jenrick as an attack dog, they could potentially make quite a powerful pairing. However that requires a purge of the LibDems (as recently suggested by Lord Frost).
Speaking of the LibDems, they did have some decent policies back in the day - EU Referendum (they naively thought it would settle the issue in favour of the EU), no tuition fees, £10k personal tax allowance when it was down at about £6k, so no need to feel daft about voting for them Nick.
Really hard to see at this stage how best to ensure as big a Labour defeat as possible. Restore may well offer a policy platform that could in most part be adopted by the Tory’s, I’ll wait and see what happens. I care very deeply about freedom of speech so who will make the most running with this particular baton!!
I live in Bristol Central, so can only vote strategically now. Currently the Greens reign supreme locally and nationally.
More than a sad state of affairs!!!
I don't 100% rule out voting for the tories, though it would be hard to trust them. 2029 is a long way away. I should probably put money in a swear box every time I say that. For example, they might split and send their Lib Dems off to Alton Towers.
It's difficult to predict how things will develop in the next few years. I don't have much confidence in Jenrick. However, I suppose I'm currently inclined to go with what Lowe supports even if it's them. But then I'm in one of the few seats that is likely safe conservative even if they go down to 20 seats.
For me, the Tories need to get rid of the 2/3 of their MPs who would be happier in with the Lib Dems. Reform appear to be going the wrong direction, more left wing, an Everyman party, that will eventually appeal to no one.
Jenrick can be the Leader of the Tories but his party will drag him down; see Liz Truss for reference.
Someone needs to make some tough decisions on welfare, immigration, taxes; it's not clear who that will be.
Farage may think he can say anything to get elected and then do something different in power. Unfortunately this is what Labour and the Tories have been doing for decades, and why so many of us have lost faith in politics and politicians. Vote Social Democratic Party if you are fortunate enough to have a candidate in your constituency.
Voting Tory is like excusing an abusive partner insisting they've changed this time. "I know I said this last time, and the time before.. and the time before that but this time I really mean it." First they'd have to get rid of the liberal democrats who comprise two thirds of the party, and have insinuated themselves into every aspect of it. Then they would have to find a cabinet of social, moral and economic conservatives who actually believed in something, and would hold out for it against the whips. Most 1922 types still believe Boris is a conservative and will arise from the shire to save them in their hour of need. Look what they did to Bridgen, and tell me they wouldn't do the same all over again.
All true. Can't argue with any of that
Weirdly I feel like I’m leaning away from Reform.
Over promised to build a base of support, then provide just enough red meat to maintain the easily led flock. Reading Pete North’s dissection of them, there’s so little substance and the body count is rising. Ben, Wolfe, Lowe, Murdough, Lotus Eater boys etc etc.