Reform UK Wales leader ‘struggling to get party members to campaign for him’
Martin Shipton
Reform UK is struggling to get its members to campaign in the seat where its leader in Wales is expected to stand in May’s Senedd election.
Former London councillor Dan Thomas, who was appointed by Nigel Farage without any consultation with members of the party in Wales, is due to stand in the new super-constituency of Casnewydd Islwyn, which includes the town of Blackwood, where he was brought up.
But an email leaked to Nation.Cymru that was sent to local party members by Kevin Preston, who chairs Newport and Islwyn Reform, states: “Out of over 1400 members and supporters in our branch so far only eight have said they will help campaign this weekend in Lliswerry and Blackwood. Five of these eight are the committee members. Unfortunately this is typical of the response we get.
“We stand a good chance of doing well in the upcoming elections (only one month 18 days away) IF we get the support we need NOW. There is no need to worry if you haven’t done it before you can be teamed up with an experienced canvasser. Please make the effort to help and let us know your availability.
“We can’t do it without your help.”
A Conservative source said: “I don’t think Reform’s ‘motorway toll’ manifesto policy for a relief road has gone down overly well in Newport. Seems they’re now struggling to get the troops out.”
The issue of an M4 relief road has been highly contentious in the Newport area for many years. Residents and businesses have complained about persistent traffic logjams around the Brynglas tunnels, which they say make connectivity in south Wales much more difficult. But former Labour First Minister Mark Drakeford rejected building a relief road on environmental and cost grounds.
Earlier this month Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said his party would press for a toll road to be built if it won the Senedd election.
His comments came during the launch of his party’s Welsh manifesto at the International Convention Centre in Newport.
The transport section of Reform’s Welsh manifesto pledged to “build the M4 relief road”.
The manifesto states: “The failure to build the M4 relief road has imposed huge costs on commuters, freight, and the wider Welsh economy.
“We will seek private funding or, as a national economic priority that also benefits England, funding from a Reform instituted British Sovereign Wealth Fund to finance the work as part of wider commitment to developing a Severnside economic zone.”
As Farage was stepping off the stage in Newport, he told BBC Wales his Welsh leader Dan Thomas wanted to “get private capital in, make it a toll road, and give the people the option of doing it”.
“Not much of the expenditure here would have to come from taxes,” he said.
The Welsh Conservatives criticised Reform at the time, saying Welsh motorists should not be charged to use the M4.
The Senedd Tories have also pledged to build an M4 relief road if the party wins the May 7 election.
The party proposes to fund the project through a combination of existing budgets, borrowing, and UK Government support.
Charged
Welsh Conservative Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Sam Rowlands, said: “People in Wales are already paying the price for years of poor transport decisions, so the last thing motorists need is the prospect of being charged again just to use a vital piece of infrastructure like the M4.
“The Welsh Conservatives have been clear that Wales needs better transport links, not new tolls.
“Our manifesto commits to delivering major road improvements, including an M4 relief road, upgrading the A55 and dualling the A40 to Fishguard, to ease congestion and support economic growth.
“Motorists and businesses rely on the M4 every day. The priority should be improving the network and tackling congestion, not introducing new charges that would place yet another burden on commuters, families and businesses across south Wales.”
Newport Conservative Leader Cllr Matthew Evans added: “How many motorists would pay the toll?
“How many would simply continue on the existing M4 or even detour through Newport’s A-Roads to avoid paying the toll?
“What private finance company is going to come up with £1.5 billion to fund building the relief road?”
Put up costs
A spokesperson for Welsh Labour said: “Reform have admitted they want to put up costs. They’d build a road and make hard working people pay for it every single day.”
A political source told Nation.Cymru: “There’s no doubt that Reform is struggling to get supporters to engage in active campaigning. It’s a party that relies heavily on the personality cult surrounding Farage, but the shine is wearing off as people become more aware of his lucrative moonlighting on a dozen jobs above his salary as an MP, not to mention his racism and support for Trump.”
Reform has yet to make any announcement relating to its list of candidates for Wales – a move widely believed to be aimed at reducing the time opponents and journalists have to discover skeletons in the cupboard of those nominated.
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Reform UK ethos is like a colander or a net with extra large holes through which its brainless adherents keep falling and floundering. It’s time everyone realised that they are no good for CYMRU.
I don’t blame anyone for not wanting to go out and canvass. It’s really awful on the doorsteps. I’ve witnessed people spitting, tamping down on their leaflets and throwing them in canvassers’ faces. Telling you to eff off and grown men sizing up to you with puffed up shoulders. Anyone brave enough to go out there in this visceral climate, respect to you. It would be interesting to see some investigative journalism following the canvassers around the different parties to cover the good, the bad and the downright ugly out there. It’s not pleasant out there.
Yes, I’m sure it affects canvassers from all parties. Would be interesting to know who is most abused amongst those still willing to put themselves out there
Have to agree. You have to be mad to want to be a politician in this environment. A lot of anger at politicians at the moment. This is worsened as next Senedd period will mostly be about cutting public services, you won’t be coming in to undertake a particularly positive agenda of change. You can see that from the list of candidates; they are not a great set, partly because it’s very difficult to get people to stand. Plus the money actually isn’t that great. Why quit a stable job to be 1) shouted at and 2) decide which public… Read more »
Nigel and Donald’s war of choice hiking fuel prices won’t be helping.
Then there’s the way he was parachuted in on the sole whim of the owner. Perhaps Nigel-worship isn’t strong enough after all to overcome the effect of dictatorial methods
Is it possible that the penny has dropped that even though they are members of a public limited company, sorry, political party, that their opinions are not valued enough to elect a leader?
Looking at the disaster thats accompanied their candidates unvelling in Scotland – one already suspended with more on the way – its no surprise Reform are delaying announcing their candidates in Wales till as late as they can get away with. At this rate voters in Wales still wont know who Reform’s candidates are when they go to cast their votes on May 7th.
Either they’re delaying their big announcement in order to minimise the amount of dirt that can be uncovered on their candidates, or they can’t actually rustle up enough candidates. Or both.
I guess nobody wants to reply to the question “How can you support a party where the leader who is so greedy
Despite earning £1m pa in side hustles prrepared to sell Wales down the river in a Poundland video for £106
Meanwhile the whole Reform network buttoned down on mentioning it
Tthe usual Reform Wales supects have retlaoted by turning their guns on Will and Martin
What a toxic dreadfiul lot
The bookies now have Plaid at 1/10 odds to get most seats
Plaid leading a collaboration with 1 or 2 runners-up sounds good until the hard decisions have to be taken. They won’t get any “extras” from a Westminster regime that will be between a rock and a hard place so cuts will be central to the agenda, not growth. That’s when likes of Reform, excluded by the ballot box, will be cheerleaders for all kinds of dissent. The continuous rant of unfocussed opposition whining and moaning about how the new Bay regime lets Wales down. Sounds like another old broken record will play for 5 years.
Certainly if Reform do gain victory in a general election (a lot of dirty water to flow under the bridge by then ,mind) Wales likely to be punished severely for turning their backs on them No favours from Westminster ith labour either I agree whatever theoutcome troubled times ahead full of friction and hot air
A nest of vipers
Farage sees the toll road as a reward for his cronies . A juicy £2bn contract with a guranteed income fom the Welsh Gov;t which will allow them to obtain finance
Offset by toll fees where the contract for collection thrown into the mix
A huge benafeast with any cost overuns (which there will be plenty) picked up by the Welsh taxpayer
A bit like Dan’s outsourcing in Barnet but on steroids
Two Tory stooges jumped ship and didn’t get the top slot in Farages company. That must burn.
Is reform’s toll road plan like the Severn bridge, where the company had to make one-billion pounds profit before it passed into public ownership. Or is it a permanent private road toll road?
Anyone watching Dirty Business on C4 on demand will know what their Thatcherite neoliberalism is really about: a dangerous ideology that should be proscribed.
Has any of the journalists working for N.C managed to establish where this imposter lives yet, is it Bath or Blackwood?? Journalists know where ms’s and mp’s live so why is it so difficult to let the public know where this BritNat lives??
Couldn’t he ring some of Nathan’s old contacts? Oh right….
Reform UK is Nigel Farage. That’s Dan Thomas’ problem.
It’s also Reform UK’s problem. When Farage gets tired of this business venture, he’ll move on to something else, leaving Reform UK, like UKIP before it, as just another has-been of a party.
Reform UK has stopped supporting candidates who have been working in their constituencies for months and years, and instead shipped in new candidates from outside those constituencies to support the new leader, Dan Thomas. Many of those original candidates have been pushed out of the selection process and people from local branches are really upset as they do not recognise these new candidates and have noted they have not been in the local branches supporting those original candidates who have been out in all weathers expecting to be fairly elected to represent their constituencies. Community links are so important where… Read more »
Come on people challenge what is happening on the ground today, candidates being dropped or given positions where they wont be elected but for the chosen few of David Thomas’es mates and list, in favour of his friends and mates from behind the scenes in Reform Uk. Poor choices with people who have no experiance in the constituencies make them stand up and be counted and support your local candidate not those being parachuted in.