After a speech that was supposed to be Reform\u2019s attempt to restore their economic credibility, Nigel Farage has left the public with far more questions than answers.<\/p>\n
Farage did not set out which of the \u00a3140bn of commitments he made last year he still stands by, and which he has now dropped. And in a speech which was supposed to be demonstrating fiscal restraint, he instead announced \u2018the biggest council housebuilding programme ever\u2019, which could run into the tens of billions of pounds.<\/p>\n
Stride was referring to Farage saying in his speech: \u201cWe will commit to the biggest building programme of genuinely affordable housing in this country that has ever been seen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stride added:<\/p>\n
After this rambling, incoherent speech, it is clear Reform\u2019s economy policy is in chaos. Farage might claim he\u2019s not a \u2018one man band\u2019, but he can\u2019t even tell us who his chancellor would be. This is not serious, it is just more announcements without a plan.<\/p>\n
To back up Stride\u2019s point about unanswered questions, the Tories released a list of 10 questions unanswered by Reform UK<\/a>. For the record, here they are:<\/p>\n 1) Which of their previous \u00a3140bn of spending commitments are Reform saying are fully funded commitments, and which are merely \u201caspirations\u201d?<\/p>\n 2) In the speech, Farage promised the biggest council housebuilding programme ever \u2013 how much would this cost and how would it be funded?<\/p>\n 3) Reform\u2019s \u2018Contract\u2019 promised what they said were \u00a3141bn a year of spending increases and unfunded tax cuts. The IFS pointed out their proposals would cost \u201ctens of billions of pounds per year\u201d more than they had calculated. What are Reform\u2019s current spending and tax pledges, and how are they being paid for?<\/p>\n 4) Farage claimed that he had been \u201cmisunderstood\u201d on the two-child benefit cap. So why did he previously say \u201cwe believe lifting the two-child cap is the right thing to do\u201d? What\u2019s changed?<\/p>\n 5) Farage claimed he has proposed the biggest welfare cuts of any party, including \u00a39bn from Pip for people with low level anxiety \u2013 what evidence does he have for these claims?<\/p>\n 6) Farage today criticised stamp duty on shares \u2013 is he promising to remove this?<\/p>\n 7) Farage praised crypto again today and last month promised to cut capital gains tax on crypto assets from 24% to 10%? How much would this cost, and what would stop it from being used for tax avoidance?<\/p>\n 8) Farage said public sector pension savings are supposed to pay for these promises. How much are Reform proposing they will save and how? Can we see their workings?<\/p>\n 9) Why can\u2019t Farage say who his shadow chancellor will be \u2013 or is he just a one-man band?<\/p>\n 10) Reform\u2019s last manifesto was billed as a \u201ccontract\u201d with the British people. Isn\u2019t today\u2019s speech a (partial) admission that, if he\u2019d been elected as prime minister, he would have broken the promises he made in that contract? What does this say about our ability to trust anything Reform ever say?<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Key events<\/p>\n Show key events only<\/p>\n Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature<\/p>\n What journalists and commentators are saying about Farage’s economy speech<\/p>\n Here is a round-up of what journalists and commentators are saying about Nigel Farage\u2019s speech today.<\/p>\n Adam Bienkov from Byline Times says <\/a>this about Farage\u2019s proposal for the minimum wage for young workers to be cut.<\/a><\/p>\n Nigel Farage, who has so far registered a total of \u00a3280,500 for four hours a month as a \u201cbrand ambassador\u201d for a company selling gold bars, thinks a \u00a310 an hour minimum wage for young people is too high<\/p>\n George Eaton at the New Statesman <\/a>says Farage is not giving an accurate picture of what drastic spending cuts would look like.<\/p>\n What would real spending cuts look like? A recent report<\/a> by Policy Exchange offers a snapshot. It calls for a three-year freeze in the state pension and the abolition of the triple lock; the removal of pensioner benefits such as winter fuel payments, free bus passes and free prescriptions from all but the poorest; the scaling back of childcare subsidies and free school meals; and the introduction of a \u00a320 fee for GP appointments. Reform and the Conservatives \u2013 for all their purported radicalism \u2013 are not prepared to propose anything so contentious.<\/p>\n Ben Riley-Smith from<\/a> the Telegraph says Nigel Farage\u2019s new economic offer is reminiscent of what mainstream parties offer.<\/p>\n For an insurgent, the new strategy has curious echoes of how the mainstream parties play it when they\u2019re in opposition – keep your powder dry on giveaways until nearer the general election, when you know where the governing party is ending up and what you can afford<\/p>\n James Heale at the Spectator<\/a> says Farage sounded like a mainstream Conservative.<\/p>\n Farage declared that a Reform administration would be \u2018the most pro-business, the most pro-entrepreneurship government that has been seen in this country in modern times\u2019. He accepted that major tax cuts would be off the agenda until government debt was down, hammering both of the two main parties on their record here. Much of his 30-minute speech was indistinguishable from that given by any mainstream Conservative politician. There were echoes of the address given by Andrew Griffith, the shadow business secretary, at last month\u2019s Tory conference: financial education in schools, revitalising the City and cutting post-Brexit regulations.<\/p>\n Sean O\u2019Grady from the Independent says<\/a> Farage seems to be hoping economic collapse will trigger and election.<\/p>\n Nigel Farage\u2018s suggestion that market forces will force Labour to adopt austerity measures that will in turn collapse the government is wishful thinking masquerading as wisdom.<\/p>\n Matthew Lynn at the Spectator<\/a> says the speech shows Farage is serious about power.<\/p>\n In reality, Farage has learned the lesson of the Truss debacle. A Reform government could easily be destroyed by the financial markets within its first few weeks of taking power. Instead, Farage has seen that it is better to bet on growth, especially from scaling back Net Zero, and potentially opening up the UK\u2019s plentiful reserves of shale oil and gas, and then use the revenues from that to steadily lower the tax burden. It is dull, and doesn\u2019t promise many fireworks. But it is also a lot more likely to actually work.<\/p>\n Farage\u2019s latest speech is hardly tantalisingly, but it makes one thing plain to see: this is a man, and a party, that is serious about winning power.<\/p>\n Tom Harwood from <\/a>GB News says one energy plan announced by Farage today was identical to the Tories\u2019.<\/p>\n Interesting pledge today from Farage to reduce energy bills by \u00a3165 pa.<\/p>\n That\u2019s the same precise figure that the Conservative Party announced a month ago at their conference.<\/p>\n There are details of the Tory plan here<\/a>. Today Farage said \u201cWe reckon, sensibly we could cut \u00a3165 per annum off everybody\u2019s electricity bill.\u201d<\/p>\n Harwood also says<\/a> the speech was more lightweight than he was expecting.<\/p>\n This big economic speech from Nigel Farage is much lighter on policy than I was expecting.<\/p>\n Michael White, the former Guardian political editor, says<\/a> Farage has bowed to reality.<\/p>\n Farage using the word \u201caspiration\u201d about Reform fantasy tax & spend 2024 promises (\u00a3100 bn extra borrowing?) is a big moment, his first brush with reality. And he\u2019s right to question UK\u2019s costly pension triple lock \u2013 we must target it better so I get less<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Paul Nowak, the TUC general secretary, says Nigel Farage\u2019s speech this morning shows that Reform UK is the party of austerity. He says:<\/p>\n The cat is well and truly out of the bag \u2013 Reform is the party of austerity.<\/p>\n Nigel Farage wants to finish what the Tories started.<\/p>\n After 14 years of cuts that gutted our schools, hospitals and councils, he\u2019d slash even deeper \u2013 starving our public services of vital funds.<\/p>\n His ideological attack on net zero will place tens of thousands of jobs at risk in key sectors like EV vehicles and green steel.<\/p>\n And while he\u2019s at it, he\u2019d drag Britain into a race to the bottom on workers\u2019 rights, consumer and environmental standards \u2013 unleashing further chaos that would be paid for by working people.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>NAHT teaching union loses legal bid to block introduction of Ofsted’s new report card system for grading schools<\/p>\n A head teachers\u2019 union has lost a bid to bring a high court legal challenge against Ofsted over the watchdog\u2019s plan to grade schools through report cards, PA Media reports. PA says:<\/p>\n The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), along with head teacher Barbara Middleton, began legal action against Ofsted in May this year, claiming that the body failed to adequately consult on its plans to change the way schools are inspected.<\/p>\n Ofsted scrapped single-word judgments for schools in 2024 and unveiled the new report card scheme in September, which is due to come into effect on November 10.<\/p>\n The new framework was announced following a consultation launched after criticism of the inspection system since the death of head teacher Ruth Perry.<\/p>\n At the high court today, barristers for the NAHT and Middleton said that they should be allowed to proceed with a legal challenge over Ofsted\u2019s consultation and decision to adopt the new framework.<\/p>\n They claimed the consultation \u201cruled out\u201d the use of \u201cnarrative-only verdicts\u201d on schools and failed to consider the impact of the new framework on staff wellbeing.<\/p>\n They also asked a judge to temporarily block the report card plans from coming into force, pending the full hearing of the challenge.<\/p>\n Lawyers for Ofsted said it was \u201cvigorously opposed\u201d to a delay in implementing the plans, telling the court that they were a \u201cconsiderable upgrade in terms of wellbeing\u201d and that the challenge \u201cis on any view a weak claim\u201d.<\/p>\n In a ruling, Mr Justice Saini dismissed the claim, finding that Ofsted had not made an \u201carguable error\u201d.<\/p>\n He said: \u201cIt is for Ofsted to decide how to conduct its inspections in the way which, in its expert judgment, is most effective, while taking account of the risk to the wellbeing of teaching staff and leaders.\u201d<\/p>\n He continued: \u201cThe evidence satisfies me that Ofsted\u2019s conclusions, that a grading plus narrative approach best balances the different interests at play, was reached after a detailed consultation conducted in a procedurally lawful way and after a careful assessment of the various views expressed to it, including consideration of wellbeing issues.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n There will be an urgent question in the Commons at 3.30pm about the acquittal of \u201cSoldier F\u201d in the Bloody Sunday murder trial<\/a>, followed by a statement from Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, at about 4.15pm.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Farage criticised after he refuses to confirm that Reform UK remains committed to PR Peter Walker is the Guardian\u2019s senior political correspondent.<\/p>\n The Liberal Democrats have condemned Nigel Farage<\/a> as \u201ca chancer\u201d after the Reform UK leader declined to say whether he still supported proportional representation now his party seems likely to benefit from the current voting system.<\/p>\n Farage has long been a vocal advocate as PR, including before the last general election, where Reform received more than 14% of the total votes but fewer than 1% of the MPs. Asked \u2013 by the Guardian\u2019s Pippa Crerar \u2013 at Monday\u2019s press conference about why he had \u201cgone rather quiet\u201d on PR, Farage ignored the question.<\/p>\n Lisa Smart, the Cabinet Office spokesperson for the Lib Dems, who very much remain fans of PR, said:<\/p>\n Nigel Farage is a chancer and a grifter. He\u2019s following the Trump playbook once again: cynically liking one set of rules until another lot suit him better.<\/p>\n Previously a supporter of proportional representation, Farage seems to have dropped that commitment \u2013 along with his economic contract to the nation \u2013 as he thinks it\u2019s in his interests. But maybe truly fair votes were never going to be Farage\u2019s bag, given his deep-seated desire to twist Britain into a shape that benefits him and his ilk.<\/p>\n In its manifesto last year Reform said it was committed to PR. But earlier this year Zia Yusuf, who at the time was party chair and who is now head of policy, said moving to PR would bring Britain to gridlock. He told a Spectator podcast<\/a>:<\/p>\n I firmly believe \u2013 and I\u2019m speaking personally here \u2013 I think if PR was ever instituted in this country, we will end up in a state of gridlock. We will not be able to do the frankly quite ambitious, and in some cases radical, things by the time we get to 2029 that we\u2019re going to need to do to unshackle the British economy from the crazy overregulation to unleash the potential of British ingenuity.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Tories claim Farage’s ‘incoherent’ economy speech leaves multiple unanswered questions<\/p>\n The Conservatives<\/a> have described Nigel Farage\u2019s speech today as rambling and incoherent. This is from Mel Stride, the shadow chancellor.<\/p>\n After a speech that was supposed to be Reform\u2019s attempt to restore their economic credibility, Nigel Farage has left the public with far more questions than answers.<\/p>\n Farage did not set out which of the \u00a3140bn of commitments he made last year he still stands by, and which he has now dropped. And in a speech which was supposed to be demonstrating fiscal restraint, he instead announced \u2018the biggest council housebuilding programme ever\u2019, which could run into the tens of billions of pounds.<\/p>\n Stride was referring to Farage saying in his speech: \u201cWe will commit to the biggest building programme of genuinely affordable housing in this country that has ever been seen.\u201d<\/p>\n Stride added:<\/p>\n After this rambling, incoherent speech, it is clear Reform\u2019s economy policy is in chaos. Farage might claim he\u2019s not a \u2018one man band\u2019, but he can\u2019t even tell us who his chancellor would be. This is not serious, it is just more announcements without a plan.<\/p>\n To back up Stride\u2019s point about unanswered questions, the Tories released a list of 10 questions unanswered by Reform UK<\/a>. For the record, here they are:<\/p>\n 1) Which of their previous \u00a3140bn of spending commitments are Reform saying are fully funded commitments, and which are merely \u201caspirations\u201d?<\/p>\n 2) In the speech, Farage promised the biggest council housebuilding programme ever \u2013 how much would this cost and how would it be funded?<\/p>\n 3) Reform\u2019s \u2018Contract\u2019 promised what they said were \u00a3141bn a year of spending increases and unfunded tax cuts. The IFS pointed out their proposals would cost \u201ctens of billions of pounds per year\u201d more than they had calculated. What are Reform\u2019s current spending and tax pledges, and how are they being paid for?<\/p>\n 4) Farage claimed that he had been \u201cmisunderstood\u201d on the two-child benefit cap. So why did he previously say \u201cwe believe lifting the two-child cap is the right thing to do\u201d? What\u2019s changed?<\/p>\n 5) Farage claimed he has proposed the biggest welfare cuts of any party, including \u00a39bn from Pip for people with low level anxiety \u2013 what evidence does he have for these claims?<\/p>\n 6) Farage today criticised stamp duty on shares \u2013 is he promising to remove this?<\/p>\n 7) Farage praised crypto again today and last month promised to cut capital gains tax on crypto assets from 24% to 10%? How much would this cost, and what would stop it from being used for tax avoidance?<\/p>\n 8) Farage said public sector pension savings are supposed to pay for these promises. How much are Reform proposing they will save and how? Can we see their workings?<\/p>\n 9) Why can\u2019t Farage say who his shadow chancellor will be \u2013 or is he just a one-man band?<\/p>\n 10) Reform\u2019s last manifesto was billed as a \u201ccontract\u201d with the British people. Isn\u2019t today\u2019s speech a (partial) admission that, if he\u2019d been elected as prime minister, he would have broken the promises he made in that contract? What does this say about our ability to trust anything Reform ever say?<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The foreign affairs committee is currently taking evidence from Sir Chris Wormald, the cabinet secretary, and Sir Olly Robbins, permanent secretary at the Foreign Office, about the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US. There is a live feed here.<\/a><\/p>\n Share<\/a>Farage accused of betraying pensioners, but praised for ‘fiscal discipline’, after hinting he might ditch pensions triple lock<\/p>\n If Nigel Farage was hoping to use his speech this morning to establish some economic credibility (see 9.34am<\/a>), he did not really achieve that. While he confirmed that the 2024 Reform UK manifesto has been consigned to the dustbin, and that the party is now committed to controlling borrowing before it starts slashing taxes (see 11.53am<\/a>), there was next to no detail at all about what this policy might involve, or how the party would cut overall spending. Instead, most of it was just a familiar rant about regulation, and how everything was better in the 1980s.<\/p>\n But there is at least one area where Farage might attract the backing of mainstream economic opinion; he refused to commit to keeping the pensions triple lock. (See 11.58am.<\/a>)<\/p>\n Commenting on this, Daisy Cooper, the Lib Dem Treasury spokesperson, said:<\/p>\n Farage is looking to raid the pockets of some of the most vulnerable pensioners to pay for his anti-net zero agenda and the mysterious, unelected \u2018advisers\u2019 he envisages running the government.<\/p>\n He is no champion of pensioners \u2013 he\u2019d betray them if he ever reached Downing Street.<\/p>\n The Lib Dems were proud to introduce the pension triple lock to tackle pensioner poverty and we will fight to protect the pensioners of today and tomorrow from the vultures in Reform UK.<\/p>\n Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, has also backed the triple lock<\/a>, implying her party would commit to keeping it in a future manifesto<\/a>. Labour has not made a commitment on the triple lock for the next election, but it has not indicated any enthusiasm to get rid of it.<\/p>\n Yet many economists and policy experts believe the triple lock, which guarantees that the state pension will rise every year in line with earning, inflation or by 2.5%, whichever is higher, is not a sensible long-term policy. It is due to cost \u00a315bn a year by 2030,<\/a> three times more than expected when it was introduced by the coalition government.<\/p>\n This is what Robert Colvile, director of the Centre for Policy Studies, told Politico <\/a>after it reported that Reform might get rid of the triple lock.<\/p>\n For years it\u2019s been clear to everyone who\u2019s looked at the public finances that the triple lock is unsustainable \u2013 and increasingly unfair given that so much of the extra money goes to the already wealthy.<\/p>\n If Farage really does commit to replacing the triple lock with a more sustainable alternative, it will not only be an extremely welcome \u2013 and courageous \u2013 move, but would allow Reform to depict themselves as the real party of fiscal discipline.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a008.11 EST<\/p>\n Farage says fees paid to firms managing public sector pensions ‘exorbitant’, as he implies workers would not lose out<\/p>\n At the start of his Q&A Farage was also asked if his comments about defined benefit pensions (see 10.12am<\/a> and 11.51am<\/a>) meant that people like teachers, police officers and NHS staff would get their pensions cut under a Reform government.<\/p>\n Farage rejected the premise of the question.<\/p>\n But he said, in the councils it runs, Reform had discovered that the authorities were paying \u201cexorbitant fees to the pensions industry\u201d. He claimed the pension funds could be better administered. And he said Richard Tice<\/a> would say more on this in a speech later this week.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n In response to the first question during his Q&A, which was about whether people would trust Reform UK<\/a> now that it has ditched its manifesto tax promises, Farage claimed the party was being responsible. He said:<\/p>\n I would say this to you, we are being mature, we are being sensible and we are not over promising.<\/p>\n But for us not to take account of the dire state of our public finances, that, I think, would be irresponsible.<\/p>\n Do we want to have a smaller state? Yes. Are we going to cut the benefits bill? Yes. Will the civil service be smaller? Yes. Will we get a grip on public sector pensions? Yes.<\/p>\n But we can\u2019t have massive tax cuts until the markets can say we\u2019ve at least got these things in hand.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Farage claims Reform UK not ‘one-man band’, but says it’s ‘not ready’ to announce who its chancellor would be<\/p>\n Q: [From the Guardian\u2019s Pippa Crerar] Who would be your chancellor \u2013 Richard Tice<\/a>, Zia Yusuf, or someone else? Do you still support PR? And, if you are breaking promises, doesn\u2019t that make you look like other parties?<\/p>\n Farage pushes back at the idea that he has gone back on has promises. He says the policies in the 2024 manifesto were just \u201caspirations\u201d. He says today he is being realistic \u201cabout the state of the economy\u201d.<\/p>\n As for who the chancellor might be, or who the home secretary might be, Farage says: \u201cThis is a work in progress.\u201d He said Reform has been attracting high-profile recruits. He goes on:<\/p>\n There\u2019ll be more announcements in the next couple of weeks of people with expertise. No speculation about defections here \u2026<\/p>\n And what I\u2019ve tried to do really hard this year is to get away from this idea, this criticism, that somehow it\u2019s a one-man band. It\u2019s not a one-man band. It\u2019s a broadening team.<\/p>\n He cites David Bull, the party chair, Richard Tice, the deputy leader, MPs Lee Anderson and Danny Kruger, and the policy chief Zia Yusuf sitting in the audience as members of this team. And there will be more and more as time goes on, he says.<\/p>\n As we develop and build that team, we\u2019ll start to give people labels. Right now, we\u2019re not ready.<\/p>\n But he says all the press conferences the party is holding shows it is developing thinking \u201cin a wide range of areas\u201d. He says Tice will give a speech on Wednesday.<\/p>\n He does not anwer the PR part of Pippa\u2019s question.<\/p>\n That was the end of the Q&A.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Q: Do you still support nationalising utilities, and the steel industry?<\/p>\n Starmer says nationalisation should only be used in an emergency. But in the case of British Steel, that was justified, he says.<\/p>\n He also says he thinks Thames Water could be nationalised without any cost to the taxpayer.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Farage says there is an argument that the minimum wage is too high for younger workers. He suggests it should be lowered for that age group.<\/p>\n![\"Peter](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Peter_Walker.png\")
Peter Walker<\/p>\n
Now, however, things are different. Such is the distorting effect of first past the post that now Reform are polling above 30%, this is generally seen as enough to give them a clear majority in the Commons.<\/p>\n