‘We must be ready for early election,’ Nigel Farage tells partypublished at 15:21 British Summer Time 5 September
15:21 BST 5 September
Adam Goldsmith
Live reporter
Image source, PA Media
Reform party members were in a jubilant mood today, as the
party’s Birmingham conference aligned with news of Deputy Prime Minister Angela
Rayner’s departure from government.
Soon after Rayner announced she would be resigning after
underpaying tax on a flat purchase in Hove, Reform party leader Nigel Farage
sought to capture the moment by giving his headline speech three hours early.
After a rush for seats, the crowds at Birmingham’s National
Exhibition Centre were urged by Farage to “be ready” for an early
general election in 2027 – though one isn’t expected until 2029.
Watching on, our correspondent Nick Eardley describes how
it’s hard
to overstate the confidence at the Reform party’s conference.
We’ve got a full
rundown of Farage’s performance and promises on stage – which had
touches of Donald Trump’s campaign as the Clacton MP pledged to “make
Britain great again”.
Today’s event is the first of the party conferences that
take place in the autumn and Reform looked to drum up anticipation when it
welcomed ex-Tory minister Nadine Dorries to its ranks last night.
Invited on stage by Farage, she told supporters in the hall
that Reform is the “party of the moment” – and our reporter at the
conference says a
lot has changed for the party in a year.
We’re ending our live coverage here, but you can have
a read of our news story for the full picture on Nigel Farage’s speech to the
Reform party conference.