The Reform Thread

[east-stand-nic]

1 minute ago, tdmickey3 said:

Fixed it for you, no need to thank me

Childish and all to predictable. As always. 

[Weston Super Saint]

15 hours ago, sadoldgit said:

 

When people tell you who they are, believe them. 

The lack of self awareness is staggering.  Belt buckles, 'those people' Israelis / Jews etc etc.

[trousers]

[Gloucester Saint]

Whatever people think about the two main parties, Reform getting in would be the final nails in the coffin where Brexit began the burial.

Robinson and co would be totally emboldened. Racist graffiti everywhere, back to the 1970s and 80s. Economy smaller even more so than now, science especially medical science destroyed (just look at America) and Farage would stomp off after 18 months to America after falling out with his own cabinet as well as the financial markets. Watch out if you’re in need of medication, managing multi-long term conditions, let alone a woman wanting to control her own body, disabled or gay.

A very small minority would far wealthier still.

Current government is crap but be very, very careful what you wish for. Electing someone who reckons immigrants are eating swans and is a plastic Trump is not the way to unite the country.

[Gloucester Saint]

One of the biggest issues is that the opposition is just parroting Reform, especially Chris Philip. If people will seriously consider voting Reform then they’ll choose the full sugar version not the 10% less sugar option.

Tories need to return to being a solid pro-business centre right party. Only way back for them. Push the rest of the ERH headbangers to Reform, help the electorate see that Reform isn’t remotely anything new or refreshing. Get Andy Street in on a by-election, and need more like him. 

Edited September 26 by Gloucester Saint

[Jeremy Corbyn]

57 minutes ago, trousers said:

That's not a majority and I'm not sure anyone would join them in a coalition, so we're either talking an anti-reform coalition or a minority Reform.

[badgerx16]

2 hours ago, east-stand-nic said:

Childish and all to predictable. As always. 

Yes, you are.

 

Na na nana.

[revolution saint]

Here's an interesting conundrum for lib dem, green and labour supporters - would you consider voting tactically and voting Tory to stop a reform government?

I've voted tactically before and voted both lib dem and labour - both have felt like easy choices and didn't involve much soul searching.  Not sure I'd be able to say the same about voting Tory tactically though.

[Gloucester Saint]

44 minutes ago, revolution saint said:

Here's an interesting conundrum for lib dem, green and labour supporters - would you consider voting tactically and voting Tory to stop a reform government?

I've voted tactically before and voted both lib dem and labour - both have felt like easy choices and didn't involve much soul searching.  Not sure I'd be able to say the same about voting Tory tactically though.

Yes, I would vote Tory if kept Reform out in the national interest. Unlikely here as Lib Dem MP popular but needs must if it came to it. Voted for them in 2017 as whilst May botched the negotiations, her deal was miles better than anything Boris and Frost could ever manage and indeed better than anything today, no regrets.

[whelk]

Grifters Central https://news.sky.com/story/former-welsh-reform-uk-leader-pleads-guilty-to-bribery-over-pro-russian-statements-13438586

Got to be one thick gullible cunt to think this mob are going to make your life, or the country better.

Edited September 26 by whelk

[Gloucester Saint]

14 minutes ago, whelk said:

Grifters Central https://news.sky.com/story/former-welsh-reform-uk-leader-pleads-guilty-to-bribery-over-pro-russian-statements-13438586

Got to be one thick, gullible or bigoted cunt to think this mob are going to make your life, or the country better.

Fixed it for you.

[Gloucester Saint]

4 hours ago, Jeremy Corbyn said:

That's not a majority and I'm not sure anyone would join them in a coalition, so we're either talking an anti-reform coalition or a minority Reform.

Ulster unionists wouldn’t want to re-open the NI/Brexit agreement either so no chance of them propping up like they did with May.

Water too poisoned with what’s left of the Tories bar further defectors like Braverman, JRM, Truss etc. That’s also very dangerous for Reform’s messaging.

Also, there was a lot of tactical voting against the Tories in 2024 and that would be amplified several times against Reform in FPTP.

[revolution saint]

1 hour ago, Gloucester Saint said:

Yes, I would vote Tory if kept Reform out in the national interest. Unlikely here as Lib Dem MP popular but needs must if it came to it. Voted for them in 2017 as whilst May botched the negotiations, her deal was miles better than anything Boris and Frost could ever manage and indeed better than anything today, no regrets.

Yeah, my constituency, New Forest East, is true blue all the way so frankly it really didn't matter whether I voted tactically or not because the Tories would generally get close or above 50% of the electorate anyway.  I can see that changing though with a surge for reform and a collapse of the Tory vote which (hopefully) might actually leave a door open for either Labour or Lib Dems but equally it could leave me in the unenviable position of having the two main contenders being Reform and the Tories.  If push comes to shove I could vote Tory but certainly not a decision I would particularly relish.

[egg]

2 hours ago, revolution saint said:

Here's an interesting conundrum for lib dem, green and labour supporters - would you consider voting tactically and voting Tory to stop a reform government?

I've voted tactically before and voted both lib dem and labour - both have felt like easy choices and didn't involve much soul searching.  Not sure I'd be able to say the same about voting Tory tactically though.

I live in a strong Tory seat. I've never voted Tory, but would switch my vote from lib dem if it helped keep Reform out. There's a lot of lib dem support here though, so I'd be concerned about a lib dem/Tory vote split leaving the door ajar for reform. 

 

[Gloucester Saint]

Brilliant, best way to defeat the knuckledraggers

 

Edited September 26 by Gloucester Saint

[Gloucester Saint]

And this just makes me feel hungry. After all, a Battenberg cake is far more English than a friend of Tommy Robinson’s with a four pack of Carling, a spray can and a football banning order

https://www.facebook.com/manbehavingdadly/posts/someone-has-actually-turned-st-georges-cross-bollards-into-battenberg-cakes-/1407119477442647/

Edited September 26 by Gloucester Saint

[moonraker]

19 hours ago, east-stand-nic said:

Yes, in the case of you and all the other lefty loons on here I am indeed confused how you qualify as being classed as life. 

Your assumption about my political views is yet another demonstration of your confusion, recognising a deluded nut job is not an endorsement of a political ideology, its basic observation.

[whelk]

1 hour ago, moonraker said:

Your assumption about my political views is yet another demonstration of your confusion, recognising a deluded nut job is not an endorsement of a political ideology, its basic observation.

You do know he is a little backward don’t you?

[Gloucester Saint]

Agree with James Cleverley that BBC’s coverage of Reform is hugely disproportionate for a party with 4 MPs and ‘compliant’. Chris Mason is the worst offender. His background 100% needs looking further into https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/rats-in-a-sack-has-chris-mason-drunk-the-farage-kool-aid/

https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/rats-in-a-sack-chris-masons-defence-of-the-bbc-over-farage-coverage-goes-badly-wrong/

[whelk]

53 minutes ago, Gloucester Saint said:

Agree with James Cleverley that BBC’s coverage of Reform is hugely disproportionate for a party with 4 MPs and ‘compliant’. Chris Mason is the worst offender. His background 100% needs looking further into https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/rats-in-a-sack-has-chris-mason-drunk-the-farage-kool-aid/

https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/rats-in-a-sack-chris-masons-defence-of-the-bbc-over-farage-coverage-goes-badly-wrong/

Absolutely- never trust a bloke who is so puny. BBC loves Reform, such a paralysed  organisation desperate to be all things to all men but their news is so shite now. 

[Tamesaint]

I paraphrase Private Eye. 

There was outrage wIth the BBC when it interrupted its wall to wall coverage of the Reform party to show some interesting programmes. 

 

[spyinthesky]

3 hours ago, Tamesaint said:

I paraphrase Private Eye. 

There was outrage wIth the BBC when it interrupted its wall to wall coverage of the Reform party to show some interesting programmes. 

 

I have no time for Reform but the BBC was having to put up with a lot of criticism about not giving air time to the party at a time when the Polls were showing them registering highly with the electorate.
From the BBC's position they are damned if they do and damned if they don't.

[rallyboy]

The BBC have been promoting Farage for years, their patronage of his various projects have contributed to the current polls, not the other way round.

The Greens and LibDems would kill for the free airtime the BBC have given Reform.

They failed to challenge Johnson, they are repeating that 'mistake' with Farage.

It's not what you know...

[spyinthesky]

On 26/09/2025 at 17:21, whelk said:

Grifters Central https://news.sky.com/story/former-welsh-reform-uk-leader-pleads-guilty-to-bribery-over-pro-russian-statements-13438586

Got to be one thick gullible cunt to think this mob are going to make your life, or the country better.

Keep an eye out for Nige's senior adviser, a well connected and so called 'posh boy' by the name of George Cottrell, who describes dear old Nige as a father figure.
At an early age George was expelled from Malvern School for illicit gambling.
His Dad went to Gordonstoun with Prince Andrew and, apparently Mama once dated Prince Charles.
After leaving school young Mr Cottrell served eight months in a US prison in 2016 for wire fraud but continued with his gambling habit boasting about taking £50k into a branch of William Hills and losing the lot..
His Mum is one of Reform's biggest donors sticking in £500,000 in the past year.
Her son 'Posh' George now splits his time between advising Nige in the UK with part time residence in Montenegro, a country whose membership of the EU (really ????)  has been delayed due to concerns about money laundering.
This must be where George is researching facts for his new book....'How to Launder Money'...in your bookstores (possibly not that one in Petersfield!!) next February.
Worrying times ahead dear friends and not only on the pitch at St Marys.


 

[spyinthesky]

23 minutes ago, rallyboy said:

The BBC have been promoting Farage for years, their patronage of his various projects have contributed to the current polls, not the other way round.

The Greens and LibDems would kill for the free airtime the BBC have given Reform.

They failed to challenge Johnson, they are repeating that 'mistake' with Farage.

It's not what you know...

Rally,
I guess we see things a bit differently.
Both Farage and Johnson make good television and, to my mind, have been dealt with on a reasonably even handed way on the political front, so much so that the BBC have been subjected to accusations of bias from all parties.
On other non political programmes, such as 'Have I Got News For You' both Reform and Tories, in particular reference to their leaders, have been mercifully ridiculed.
The fact of life nowadays, is that a good deal of the electorate obtains their political information from non terrestrial TV.
And if there is any question of political bias on the TV, GB News is undoubtedly not a paragon of virtue,

[rallyboy]

2 hours ago, spyinthesky said:

Rally,
I guess we see things a bit differently.
Both Farage and Johnson make good television and, to my mind, have been dealt with on a reasonably even handed way on the political front, so much so that the BBC have been subjected to accusations of bias from all parties.
On other non political programmes, such as 'Have I Got News For You' both Reform and Tories, in particular reference to their leaders, have been mercifully ridiculed.
The fact of life nowadays, is that a good deal of the electorate obtains their political information from non terrestrial TV.
And if there is any question of political bias on the TV, GB News is undoubtedly not a paragon of virtue,

Perhaps we do, but you can't say that Johnson and Corbyn were treated equally by a BBC chaired by a Tory donor, with a top reporter who had best friends in the Tory cabinet.

Then we have the number of times that Farage has been on Question Time, well out of kilter with his stature, and Fiona Bruce's handling of politicians on there leaves the viewer in no doubt as to her leanings/brief. Add in the BBC failing to challenge Johnson, or even interview him when it was required, exposes the corporation's Tory-linked management and board to accusations of bias. 

As for the comedy shows, their role is to tackle power, which they do - they're not taking it easy on Starmer are they, and they shouldn't, they should always punch up.

We need a balanced media that puts tough questions to ALL parties, something that didn't happen for 14 years because too many people in the BBC had direct and personal ties to government, the platforming of unelected Farage was a natural spin-off from that.

As for GB News, it isn't a new programme, it's a PR company promoting the business interests of it's owner. 😊

[sadoldgit]

21 hours ago, Gloucester Saint said:

Agree with James Cleverley that BBC’s coverage of Reform is hugely disproportionate for a party with 4 MPs and ‘compliant’. Chris Mason is the worst offender. His background 100% needs looking further into https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/rats-in-a-sack-has-chris-mason-drunk-the-farage-kool-aid/

https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/rats-in-a-sack-chris-masons-defence-of-the-bbc-over-farage-coverage-goes-badly-wrong/

Whilst I totally agree that Reform get far more coverage than the other minority parties, as much as it sickens me they are now leading in the polls and need to be taken seriously. The far right are drowning out the moderates and if we don’t want to go the way of America we need to get behind those fighting against right wing extremism. The moderates in the Tory party have vanished and that party is dead electorally. As frightening as it sounds, Starmer is right to target Reform as his biggest threat at the next election. 

[spyinthesky]

The unfortunate fact of life is that rightly or wrongly, we tend to parrot what goes on across the pond.

All the right wing shit that Donald J Trump and his MGA acolytes have been spouting is being recreated over here by Farage and his motley crew.

I must move in the wrong circles but more or less all the people I know are centre right/centre left in their views on politics and we all seem to be without reasonable representation as reflected in recent polls.

[Lord Duckhunter]

5 hours ago, sadoldgit said:

The moderates in the Tory party have vanished and that party is dead electorally

😂😂. 
 

You don’t get it. Tory voters aren’t polling for a party further right because Rory Stewart, Soubry and their ilk have left the party, if the Conservative Party was conservative, they wouldn’t be so unpopular in the polls.
 

You really believe people think “I’m supporting reform at the moment, but if Tories were more like Grieve & Rory I’d be backing them”. Deluded 😂

Reform reflect where ex Tory voters priorities are, not where a bunch of washed up pinkos think they should be. 

[Gloucester Saint]

2 hours ago, Lord Duckhunter said:

😂😂. 
 

You don’t get it. Tory voters aren’t polling for a party further right because Rory Stewart, Soubry and their ilk have left the party, if the Conservative Party was conservative, they wouldn’t be so unpopular in the polls.
 

You really believe people think “I’m supporting reform at the moment, but if Tories were more like Grieve & Rory I’d be backing them”. Deluded 😂

Reform reflect where ex Tory voters priorities are, not where a bunch of washed up pinkos think they should be. 

That’s a skewed view of what was a very broad party pre-Brexit. Yes, the original Monday Club, Bruges Group, Conservative Way Forward (although they became more centrist over time) and ERG were clearly delighted, and closely aligned with the emergence of Reform, the One Nation Caucus started with 40-50 MPs and quickly got up to 100 plus https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Nation_Conservatives_(caucus),https://wiley.scienceconnect.io/api/oauth/authorize?ui_locales=en&scope=affiliations+alm_identity_ids+merged_users+openid+session_level+settings&response_type=code&redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fonlinelibrary.wiley.com%2Faction%2FoidcCallback%3FidpCode%3Dconnect&state=Dps2IO0LOrpSUAYYguc7KjWtugvQmVzeIKLq%2B62WBXwjZNCMb7YE5AyuAM0r2akLhBQlgTmP0ivc3nKJa2pRerTAMbDaB9ZGZdqCdr0pZaTrxD5x19vlmLTAMbDaB9ZGZdqCdr0pZaR6V%2BommeWPxrTAMbDaB9ZGZdqCdr0pZaSLviWMQhMoOlLSOEMl%2FmXJxXCk9OWCvJqcJRbRg%2FE8ckCkx7EE%2B%2FGekAHOZ1a5zEqggxQC1yEOhXqkh6nHeG4NZ8q6pjX%2FwUU%3D&prompt=none&nonce=MyvJt05irO4nfkdpYufrP7Qe%2FqueyBEIIQBnucCUmqU%3D&client_id=wiley 
Plus also Tory Reform Group https://www.trg.org.uk were sidelined given the Brexit and Nationalist driven culture war focus and the loud voices in the red tops - Sun, Mail, Express, Telegraph. 

The ERG clearly got the whip hand after Brexit and Boris’s mass expulsions but it’s a stretch to argue that the ‘pinkos’ aren’t a very significant part of the recent Conservative Party. 
That said, I’ve always got on well with One Nation Tories so they are very welcome within Lib Dem ranks. 

Edited Monday at 15:03 by Gloucester Saint