Reform UK’s conference had the buzz of a party punching well above its weight. And that is exactly what the party’s leadership is attempting to do. Nigel Farage and other senior figures spent today’s conference – the largest it has ever held – trying to persuade its members, and the wider public, that it is a credible electoral force.
They even went so far as to suggest Mr Farage could be the next prime minister.
With just five sitting MPs, the most the party has ever secured in its short history, it’s certainly a bold ambition.
Telling members “the sky is the limit”, Mr Farage also laid down some serious policy changes that he said would help get them there.
Speaking without notes on the main stage, after walking in to the sound of Eminem’s ‘Without Me’ accompanied by a selection of pyrotechnics, Mr Farage – perhaps underwhelmingly to some watchers – said the party needs to emulate… the Liberal Democrats.
He announced the creation of hundreds of local associations, as well as overhauling the party’s structure to hand back ownership to its members.
Mr Farage also attempted to distance himself from some of the offensive remarks made by since disowned Reform candidates in the leadup to the 2024 General Election, saying it was “amateurism” and a lack of resources that meant they were unable to vet candidates correctly.
Reform has not “got room for a few extremists” to “wreck” its work, he warned.
But despite the professionalism and seriousness of their plans for the next five years, the party made no attempt to tone down the theatrics – or the dog whistle politics.
On screens throughout the conference centre are large pictures of Mr Farage, accompanied by a warning message telling members that the main stage speeches will involve both pyrotechnics and latex balloons.
Meanwhile, extreme views were a running theme throughout almost all of Friday’s addresses.
Reform’s chief whip Lee Anderson, who took to the stage an hour before Mr Farage, told the audience: “I want my country back”, before ripping up a BBC licence fee reminder letter in front of a jeering crowd. He used his speech to argue it was a “disgrace” for children to be “taught they could be a different gender”, later claiming migrants arriving in the UK via small boats have “broken into our country”.
Big donor Richard Tice took to the stage to describe the goal of reaching net zero as an “extremist cult”.
Meanwhile, MP Rupert Lowe took aim at both rainbow lanyards and young people with mental health issues, accusing them of “submitting to their problems, rather than dealing with them.”
While Reform is attempting to paint itself as a mainstream party with plans to win power in the not-so-distant future, there is no doubt that extreme opinions still dominate the party’s talking points.
The conference itself, which Mr Farage dubbed a “coming of age” event for Reform, has an undeniable buzz from its members.
With five sitting MPs having been elected at the last general election for the first time in the party’s history, there is definitely a feeling among Reform’s members and leadership team that the party is about to make history.
One excited member, who was working on the merchandise stand, said this year’s conference has come on leaps and bounds from where the party started.
“From a crumbling ballroom in Manchester to this – it’s something else. It just feels magnificent.
“There’s been some very low points for Reform but those of us that have been around from the start have always been smiling”, Max Windsor-Peplow told The Independent.
The main stage feels busy, and when speeches are going on the conference floor is deserted. Unlike conferences held by Reform’s mainstream rivals, where often the speeches earlier in the day are greeted with swathes of empty seats, each of the five MPs and other speakers taking place today have been met with a full auditorium and whooping crowds.
During the two hour break at lunch time, the merchandise stall is swarmed by party members attempting to get their hands on a blue Reform UK tie signed by Richard Tice. He signed nearly a hundred of them ahead of the conference and they were sold out by 1pm.
The cult of personality is even stronger with Nigel Farage, whose speech was preceded by a lengthy photo and video montage of his life set to cinematic music, including black and white images of his childhood and clips of his speeches in the European Parliament.
But despite the intensity of Mr Farage’s personal appeal to members, he was at pains to emphasise plans to futureproof the party and make it an electoral force that is about its members rather than himself.
Whether you support Reform or loathe it, today’s conference was certainly an attempt to send a clear message to its watchers. Don’t underestimate us, Farage says.