Cocky Farage getting his wings clipped
The Reform leader has been soaring, frightening his opponents, but he now faces splits on his own side and further difficulties to come.
A few weeks before the ever longer national Christmas break (thank goodness the British economy is booming and the country can afford to shut down for three weeks) Nigel Farage picked up a gong at the Spectator Parliamentarian of the Year Awards. After winning the best newcomer prize he gave a somewhat graceless but punchy speech in which he predicted hundreds more newcomers, from the ranks of Reform, would at the next general election sweep away the old parties. The assembled Westminster and media class stirred a little uneasily on hearing this, I thought. Farage had put everyone there on notice that, as he plots a path towards the premiership, 2025 is a staging post and in British terms it is going to be his year. There is a revolution on the way. Gulp.
That reminds me, and before I forget, to wish Reaction subscribers a belated Happy New Year. I hope you and your family had a restful festive break ahead of what promises to be an exciting 2025. Here - on Reaction - is now the only place to read me every week, since I resigned from The Times on the basis that the London Defence Conference and the work our team at Reaction does on Engelsberg Ideas needs more of my time and a clearer and less cluttered head. Happily, this life change also means more time and thinking space for this newsletter.