Farage Is Back

Nigel Farage has just changed this election.

Stuart Mitchell/@IncMonocle

Wow! Well I wrote yesterday that the Tories had failed to dent Reform’s support. The situation is now even more dramatic.

The entry of Nigel Farage into the General Election as both Leader of Reform UK and candidate for Clacton is huge.

On top of that, Farage has pledged to return to the frontline and lead Reform for five years.

This is an incredible moment. With national polls already putting Reform close to overtaking the Conservatives, this is a further massive boost. It is a game-changer.

The Tories and Labour will be petrified at the prospect of Nigel Farage as a Reform MP and of Reform winning seats at this election.

Both Labour and Conservative Governments have pursued a policy of mass migration along with an outright refusal to leave the ECHR as illegal immigration has got even more out of control.

Surprise, surprise, last night we heard that Rishi Sunak’s Tories will now look at an annual cap on migration! But no actual figure nor credibility. I mean, do you believe them?

Instead the Reform revolt is underway, with Farage revealing after his announcement yesterday that:

“Reform UK has gained a new member every 5 seconds since 4pm this afternoon.”

There is talk of total chaos within the Conservative camp and of further defections from former Tory MPs.

It is blatantly obvious that Rishi Sunak’s desire to paint the entire election as being about him vs. Keir Starmer is now sheer fantasy.

They will both do their best to ignore Farage’s Reform. Don’t underestimate the prospect of Labour supporters also now switching to Reform UK instead.

So can Reform now level with or even overtake the Conservatives and emerge as the main challenger to Labour? It certainly could happen.

And who do you want as that opposition to Keir Starmer’s Labour? Farage’s Reform with him leading as an MP?

Or a Conservative Party that we hear is picking wet lefties in the sudden rush of candidate selections?

Rishi Sunak’s allies thought they had outmanoeuvred Nigel Farage and others with this surprise early election.

In actual fact the Tories are now heading for a historic calamity, defending a record of high immigration, high taxes and weak borders.