Row breaks out within Reform UK over immigration stance in Wales
Emily Price
A row has broken out within Reform UK over its stance on immigration after the group’s Welsh spokesperson made several comments that appeared to contradict the party’s stance.
In an interview with BBC Politics at the weekend, Oliver Lewis said Wales had “limited levels of immigration” which had been “arguably very positive for the economy”.
The clip was shared by the leader of the opposition in the Senedd, Darren Millar, who said immigration had been “too high” resulting in consequences for all parts of the UK – including Wales.
Sharing the interview to X, Mr Millar said: “It’s a shame that not all politicians, including Reform’s Wales spokesperson, seem to understand this.”
Spat
Reform UK – which is led by Clacton MP, Nigel Farage – has a net zero immigration stance.
The party’s policy pledges include a freeze on immigration, detention for asylum seekers that come to the UK illegally and immediate deportation for foreign criminals.
Reform currently has no Senedd members but hopes to form a new government in Wales at the 2026 election.
Backbench Tory MS Andrew RT Davies hit out at Reform on X, branding Mr Lewis “out of touch” in a post which sparked a social media spat between the pair.
Using an X account with the name, ‘UK public policy failure’ Mr Lewis said the Senedd Tories had “selectively quoted” him from the BBC Politics interview.
In a response to Andrew RT Davies, he wrote: “I just think it’s hilarious that a Tory member of a devolved assembly is criticising an (out of context) comment around the statistically accurate fact that Wales has lower immigration than England – given his party’s record on the issue!”
‘Year 8’
The Reform figure later said that the online row with the Tories was like “debating with year 8” adding that “voters want clarity, not fog.”
Sharing images of graphs to X, he said: “The data does not lie – Wales has statistically far lower levels of immigration”.
But Reform UK’s Chairman, Zia Yusuf, appeared to contradict Mr Lewis when he waded into the social media row saying the Welsh spokesperson’s comments were “not the Reform position”.
The Welsh Conservatives have since hit back, saying Mr Lewis had “made the position of Reform UK clear”.
A spokesperson for the Senedd group said: “Only the Welsh Conservatives will stand on the side of people with concerns about the levels of immigration into Wales.”
Oliver Lewis told Nation.Cymru he did not wish to comment on the matter.
A Reform UK Wales Spokesman said: “Reform UK Wales’ stance on immigration is clear. We are the only party that is promising to have net zero immigration, leave the ECHR and turn back the boats.
“Reform UK Wales understands the negative impact mass immigration has had on Wales from housing to public services.
“Whilst Labour and the Tories have failed Wales in both Westminster and Cardiff Bay, Reform UK will bring real change to Wales. Wales is broken, Wales needs Reform.”
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Wait until they work out the mass immigration is not from beyond our sea borders. Reform are an English fascist party, we don’t mandate the right. Our views are uniquely Welsh luckily.
Exactly! The hugh “Jerusalem”trumpeting Elephant in the room that gets conveniently ignored by all our politicians.
‘Mass English immigration’ has had the most detrimental effect on Welsh society. These immigrant don’t arrive on small boats but in large cars with hefty cheque books, buy houses as investments tearing the heart out of our communities undermining our culture and language, retirees who place enormous pressure on our NHS having contributed anything to our economy, and let’s not forget those English immigrants who move here and take our social housing, putting pressure on our already over whelmed services.
Interestingly enough, I’ve never had any abuse for speaking Welsh by immigrants from elsewhere, but on every occasion it has been from english people.
For what it’s worth, I’m an Englishman buying their first home in Wales, and that’s because it’s in affordable town (as compared with the situation in my hometown, being a very pricy city) which is well situated for a person who doesn’t drive and can WFH. For years my parents & I came to Wales, each year booking cottages in villages, then going for hikes around the Bannau Brycheiniog & the Black Mountains, and I’ve always preferred this kind of self-catering & exercise to going to hot countries. And sure it was mostly a place to ramble and enjoy a… Read more »
‘It’s comments like this that make me anxious …’ I don’t think that you should be. I first came to live in Wales as a student way back in 1964, for no other reason than that a Welsh university gave me my best offer. Back then I’d no particular intention to stay on and live in Wales. But as things panned out, I did stay on here and settled, and I always felt accepted and welcome. I was here for twenty years until I moved back to England’s north-west for family reasons. But when those reasons ceased to apply, I… Read more »
This is the kind of bust up you get at around 1015pm in Witherspoons.
I watched that interview on BBC Wales at the weekend and was, to my surprise, quite impressed with Oliver Lewis – he came over as a comparatively rational, calm and considered political spokesman with a focus on the distinctive circumstances which apply in Wales and a handle on the things that are different here this side of Clawdd Offa. A perceptible contrast from the usual English nationalist frothing ghouls and blathering crazies who more usually come out to speak for that party. So maybe it’s no real surprise that he’s now being condemned to a spell on their their naughty… Read more »
Yes. Unfortunately being comparatively rational and nuanced will probably mean the end for Oliver Lewis.
You know the ‘English nationalist frothing ghouls and blathering crazies’ you refer to? Oliver Lewis is one of them. Do not be taken in by his blather.
I don’t know him, and I’ve only seen him interviewed, very briefly, once before. I gather he stood for the Montgomery seat back in July, so maybe that’s where he lives. My point was simply that, if for now he continues as the media ‘face’ of Reform in Wales, his more suave and polished political style may well appeal to right-leaning voters who could otherwise be deterred by the routine gross speech of numerous other Reform politicians. I think that we’d be unwise to underestimate the potential appeal of Reform in the forthcoming Senedd elections. Maybe I ought to hope… Read more »
The Welsh Conservatives spokesperson for the Senedd group said: “Only the Welsh Conservatives will stand on the side of people with concerns about the levels of immigration into Wales”. If I’m to take this statement literally it sounds like the Tories have issues with English immigration into Wales.
A spat between two anti Welsh entities which work expressly against the interests of our country and its’ people One positive to glean from it is that we now hear the term ‘Reform UK Wales’, a desperate attempt to con Welsh voters that they have a wing dedicated to us but at least it is a full recognition of our country. Shot in foot 1. Oliver Lewis has pushed another con about immigration levels here as though we have any say over the matter and if he thinks we do, he’s just paid our Labour government a compliment for its’… Read more »
And there you have it. Reform are pretty pointless in Wales.
Theres no place for their vile party, no place for their awful policies and certainly no place for their voters here. Ironic that they rant about people coming over and not respecting our ways, but they’re completely happy to bring their fascist filth from their country to ours.
Rats fighting in a sack springs to mind
Ho what fun. Let’s see what else crawls out of the woodwork when the gloves come off.
The majority of immigrants in Wales are English born – something like 20% of the population. What is Reform’s plan to deal with those immigrants?
Also, why are Reform running an anti-immigrants campaign, when the Senedd has no immigration powers? What is reform planning to do with the powers and responsibilities that the Senedd actually have, because it sounds like they are just going to use their platform in Wales to lob grenades at the UK government.
Let’s not forget there were almost no small boat crossings before we left the Dublin deterrent because Brexit Party wanted a rock hard Brexit and the Cons gave in to them.