Why Reform Has No Choice - Konstantin Kisin
Episode Stats
Words per minute
170.4523
Harmful content
Misogyny
1
sentences flagged
Toxicity
1
sentences flagged
Hate speech
2
sentences flagged
Summary
Reform has no choice but to stay in the Tory party, says Boris Johnson. But what does that mean for the future of Nigel Farage's new political party, the UK Independence Party? And what will it mean for its future in Parliament?
Transcript
00:00:00.000
When you let Aero Truffle Bubbles melt, everything takes on a creamy, delicious, chocolatey glow.
00:00:15.680
Every family tree holds extraordinary stories, especially those of the women who shaped who we are.
00:00:21.220
In honor of International Women's Month, Ancestry invites you to shine a light on their legacy.
00:00:27.920
Enjoy free access to over 4 billion family history records and discover where they lived,
00:00:33.600
the journeys they took, and the legacy they left behind.
00:00:36.940
Start with just a name or place and let our intuitive tools guide you.
00:00:51.020
Over recent days, there's been much debate in British politics about the future of Nigel
00:00:57.040
Cemented by the defection of Robert Jenrick, the conservative shadow secretary of state for
00:01:01.060
justice and shadow Lord Chancellor, who was pushed by Tory leader Kami Badenoch as he was
00:01:05.620
about to jump ship, reform is developing a reputation for moving to the center.
00:01:10.320
Jenrick followed in the footsteps of a number of senior or formerly senior conservatives,
00:01:14.320
including Nadeem Zahawi, Nadine Doris, Jake Berry, and others.
00:01:18.740
As a curious aside, the last time I saw Jake Berry was on Question Time, when he challenged
00:01:23.160
me on my criticism of net zero to explain that net zero is the solution, not the problem.
00:01:28.860
We have to let go of some of our obsessions like net zero and so on, and we will find out
00:01:37.560
Just to pick up on what Constantine said, you are so wrong.
00:01:41.820
We do not deliver a growing northern economy by turning our back on net zero.
00:01:46.380
The north of England, this county, this region is a global leader in green technology.
00:01:53.940
We deliver a better levelled up north of England by having green collar, highly paid, secure jobs
0.82
00:02:05.560
I think it's good for your voters to hear that.
00:02:07.680
I'm sure Conservative Party voters will be pleased.
00:02:09.740
But the programme was recorded as Nadeem Zahawi was in the process of being sacked as Conservative
00:02:17.040
Party chairman because he'd failed to declare that HMRC was in the middle of an investigation
00:02:22.300
into his personal tax affairs when he was appointed to various ministerial positions.
00:02:26.980
This anecdote alone gives you a flavour of the sorts of concerns many have raised about
00:02:34.540
Last night, it was confirmed that another MP, Andrew Rosendale, had defected to reform,
00:02:39.480
bringing the number of reform MPs to seven, of whom more than half are now Tory defectors.
00:02:45.000
Lee Anderson, Danny Kruger, Robert Jenrick, and Andrew Rosendale himself.
00:02:48.680
The worry for many is that as Conservative refugees become more numerous than native reformers within
00:02:54.180
the party, the centre of gravity will shift away from reform's radical agenda towards the very
00:02:59.880
policies and personalities they so thoroughly rejected at the last election.
00:03:04.500
Reform's defiant position against the failed status quo was what won them their legion of
00:03:14.660
And having forced out tough-talking right-wingers like Rupert Lowe and Ben Habib, reform appears
00:03:21.040
It's rare for me to be accused of naive optimism, but in this instance, I do not actually share
00:03:26.100
these concerns for a number of reasons which we'll come to shortly.
00:03:29.420
But first, and much more importantly, we have to recognise that reform has no choice but to
00:03:34.420
continue salvaging what they can from the rotting carcass of the Conservative Party.
00:03:42.180
Our electoral system does not allow a charismatic leader with a small band of acolytes to storm
00:03:47.700
to power in the way that President Trump did with just J.D.
00:03:50.960
Vance, RFK Jr., Elon Musk, Tulsi Gabbard, and Vivek Ramaswamy at his side.
00:03:56.220
To become Prime Minister, Nigel Farage has to have 650 men and women stand as candidates
00:04:02.200
in constituencies across the country, and more than half of them to actually be elected.
00:04:07.200
Even now, when much of the public is fed up with the status quo and Keir Starmer enjoying
00:04:11.500
the lowest favourability ratings in history, having a reform rosette pinned on you will
00:04:16.940
not guarantee victory in a specific constituency, especially to an unknown, politically inexperienced
00:04:24.260
Once elected, that MP will be faced with the reality that standing as an MP is almost the
00:04:32.100
A political campaign is about making speeches, knocking on doors, and selling yourself to the
00:04:37.440
But once the sale is made, your constituents need you to solve their problems.
00:04:41.880
Making witty comebacks on TV requires an entirely different skill set to filling potholes.
00:04:46.900
And metaphorical potholes are no small matter, nor one to worry about once the election is
00:04:52.660
The only way reform can succeed as a political project is to win the war of the next election
00:04:58.260
and then win the peace by actually delivering both locally and nationally.
00:05:02.800
Which brings us to the final reason why reform has no choice.
00:05:06.300
If elected, the biggest challenge they face is turning the sinking oil tanker that is Britain
00:05:12.560
This will require an understanding of how the machinery of government works, something that
00:05:16.960
can only come from experience of being in government.
00:05:20.160
Many recent defectors are being described as Tory failures.
00:05:27.300
But what the public do not know is that the Tories failed despite many of their ministers
00:05:35.540
Having met a number of the people who would be at the very top of your list of incompetent,
0.76
00:05:41.720
self-serving, unprincipled, slithering creatures, I can tell you the tragedy is that most of them
00:05:48.700
Many were good, capable people trying their best within a party that had lost its way,
00:05:53.520
dealing with an openly rebellious civil service and operating within the suffocating straitjacket
00:05:58.820
of powerful Blairite legislation, which curbed their ability to actually govern the country.
00:06:04.160
Put simply, you need Tory failures to avoid reform failing in the same way.
00:06:09.160
This was, of course, what President Trump and his team learned from his first term in office.
00:06:14.160
They spent four years trying to do things and being obstructed at every turn.
00:06:18.760
It was only on his triumphant return to office that the Trump administration has been able to
00:06:26.040
This explains part of my lack of acute concern about this trend within reform.
00:06:33.080
Indeed, by the time of the next election, I expect the entire Tory right to have switched to reform with
00:06:38.040
up to 60 reform candidates being current conservative MPs.
00:06:41.980
But the other reason for my optimism is that ultimately the direction of a political party
00:06:47.720
Nigel Farage, his immensely impressive great Cardinal James Orr, and the rest of the leadership cadre
00:06:54.120
As long as they're in charge, reform will remain radical in the healthy sense of the word.
00:06:58.780
They're not extremists, which is a strength, not a weakness.
00:07:01.320
The very online world rewards the hotness of one's takes, but electoral politics in Britain
00:07:07.100
rewards a strong, clear-eyed focus on the silent majority, who are tired of economic stagnation,
00:07:12.860
illegal immigration, rising crime, and crumbling infrastructure.
00:07:19.460
But they aren't extremists, nor will they tolerate extremism.
00:07:22.960
For every vote won by posting unworkable demands on Twitter, there are five to be lost in the
00:07:29.280
Many activists and commentators feel that the next election is the last opportunity to turn
00:07:35.920
However, urgency requires more pragmatism, not less.
00:07:40.680
Whether you're a centrist like me or an ardent right-winger, the recognition of this reality
00:07:47.820
Reform is the only party capable of winning the next election.
00:07:51.620
Purity spiraling about how they are not right-wing enough will only make the outcomes you want
0.81
00:08:00.400
If you enjoy these videos, remember they're available and there's articles on my substack
00:08:08.580
The news doesn't just tell you what's happening.
00:08:11.500
It so often tells you what to think is happening.
00:08:14.700
And these days, the biggest red flag isn't what's said, it's what gets left out.
00:08:21.140
It's the only site and app that compares coverage from across the political spectrum and highlights
00:08:31.520
Their blind spot feed is one of my favorite features.
00:08:35.220
It surfaces around 20 stories a day that are being overlooked by either the left or the right.
00:08:40.440
It's a simple but powerful way to track media bias in real time.
00:08:44.200
Like this, NIH scientists recently published a declaration criticizing Trump's cuts to public
00:08:52.420
And yet, only 2% of the coverage came from right-leaning outlets.
00:08:56.620
A new study found that 2024 saw the most armed conflicts globally since 1946, a staggering
00:09:04.440
But you would have missed it if you'd only read left-wing news sources.
00:09:09.400
Headlines, ownership, bias ratings, and context.
00:09:12.400
So you can actually understand what's going on, not just react to what you're told.
00:09:16.860
Head to ground.news.trigonometry for 40% off their unlimited vantage plan, the same one
00:09:26.620
Broadway's smash hit, the Neil Diamond Musical, A Beautiful Noise, is coming to Toronto.
00:09:44.660
The true story of a kid from Brooklyn destined for something more, featuring all the songs
00:09:49.180
you love, including America, Forever in Blue Jeans, and Sweet Caroline.
00:09:53.440
Like Jersey Boys and Beautiful, the next musical mega hit is here, the Neil Diamond Musical,
00:10:00.800
April 28th through June 7th, 2026, the Princess of Wales Theatre.