Tories have given their verdict on the threat posed by Nigel Farage and Reform UK.
The Daily Express asked delegates at the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham their views on the insurgent party.
Tory member Emily Hewertson suggested the Conservatives should strike an electoral pact with Reform, which won five seats and 14.3% of the vote at the general election.
She said: “If it was up to me, I’m quite a pragmatist, I’d actually make a deal with Reform in certain seats where we’d stand down in some of the northern ones that we’re never going to win and then maybe they could stand down in some of those right-wing seats they’re not going to win.
“I think we should actually consider maybe doing an electoral pact with them.
“If not we’re going to be stuck in this rut of a Keir Starmer government that’s been a disaster.”
Tory member Emily Hewertson and peer Lord Frost (Image: DX)
Former Brexit minister Lord Frost insisted the Tories need to be more conservative to see off the threat posed by Reform.
The Tory peer said: “We can’t win elections if we’re divided on the right so we need to find a solution to that problem.
“I think we should become a properly conservative party once again that is attractive to the kind of voters who left us for the Reform Party.
“That’s not the only thing we need to do but I don’t see how we can hope to win if we don’t bring back Reform into the home.”
But Tory member Kathryn Cracknell branded Clacton MP Mr Farage as “the Pied Piper of Clacton”.
She said: “I’m looking for someone with a positive direction, pro-business, pro-economy, and a liberal approach that suits our country, not chasing after as I call him the Pied Piper of Clacton, Mr Farage.
“He’s not the way we want to be going, he’s probably reached peak, there are an awful lot of us who could never vote for a party like that and if we start merging or going anywhere that way we’re done for, we’ll never gain government again.”
Conservative member Adam Brown, who is backing Robert Jenrick in the leadership race, said Mr Farage was “a bit of a dinosaur”.
He said of Mr Jenrick: “He’s that fresh thinker, voice of the next generation, that will actually highlight Farage is a bit of a dinosaur and someone who’s not particularly in tune with modern Britain.”
Ex-Tory MP Michael Fabricant questioned whether Reform will “stay together” when asked about the threat of Mr Farage.
He said: “I think it’s going to be an interesting one. First of all will Nigel Farage decide if Labour makes the decision that MPs can’t appear on television who’s he going to go for, GB News or stay in Parliament?
“And will Reform actually stay together? I don’t know, Ukip fell apart. But look at the end of the day we’ve got to come up with policies that are actually appealing to people that voted Reform partly just to get rid of the Tories.”
It comes as Mr Farage today insisted he would not strike an electoral pact with the new Tory leader.
Speaking to ITV’s Good Morning Britain, the Reform leader said of the four Conservative candidates: “They all think with a new leader ‘it’ll all be fine, all the voters will come back to us’, and what they don’t understand is the Conservative brand is completely damaged, they have no chance of winning the next election.”
He added: “There would be no deal with them, I wouldn’t trust them anyway, they have a pattern of behaviour pretending to be one thing and then when they’re in government being quite the opposite.
“And, frankly, what I’m trying to do with Reform is replace them.”
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James Cleverly sends brutal Brexit dig to Nigel Farage and vows to crush his Reform party
James Cleverly will use the final day of the Conservative Party conference to send a swipe at Nigel Farage’s Reform.
James Cleverly will deliver a speech tomorrow (Image: Getty)
The former Home Secretary will remind the Tory faithful that it was their party who delivered Brexit and it was under his spell as Home Secretary that immigration numbers were cut.
Mr Cleverly, Robert Jenrick, Kemi Badneoch and Tom Tugendhat will each give 20-minute speeches on the final day of the Conservative Party Conference tomorrow.
They are hoping to replace Rishi Sunak as leader of the Tories on November 2.
Speaking in Birmingham, Mr Cleverly is set to say: “Everyone running needs to ask themselves do they want to be the leader or do they want to lead? I know what I want to do.
“I want to get the heel of the state off your neck, get their noses out of your business, and their hands out of your pocket.”
He is hoping to set out his vision for a “positive and optimistic Conservatism” following the bruising Tory defeat at the general election on July 4.
Mr Cleverly plans to “talk up” Conservative values and add that the only way for the Conservatives to beat Reform is to be the “best version of the Conservative Party”.
Nigel Farage’s Reform will feature in the speech (Image: Getty)
The former Foreign Secretary will say: “Let’s be enthusiastic; relatable; positive; optimistic.
“Let’s sell the benefits of a Conservative government with a smile. We will not win back voters by pretending to be something we’re not. We win back voters by being honest, by being professional, by being Conservative.
“Never forget – Reform didn’t deliver Brexit, we did. Reform didn’t cut immigration, I did. And mark my words, we will beat Reform by being the best version of ourselves.
“If we are the best version of ourselves, if we sell Conservative values, are proud of our record and confident in our future, we will win the country.”
A poll of Tory members shows that Mr Jenrick is within touching distance of Mrs Badenoch after a surge in his support.
The latest YouGov survey suggested there is a path to victory for all four candidates, although Mr Tugendhat faces a bigger hurdle than the rest.
Members would choose Mrs Badenoch by 52% to Mr Jenrick’s 48%, only a four-point lead, according to the poll of 802 Tory members conducted over nine days to Sunday night.
Mrs Badenoch and Mr Jenrick came out as the top two in the contest after the early rounds of voting.
Next week, MPs will reduce the number of contenders to two.
Taking to the main stage in Birmingham tomorrow, Mr Jenrick will say: “The truth is this.
If we’re to tackle the immense challenges we face, if we’re to restore the public’s trust, we must build something new. A new Conservative Party. That is what I call for today. Nothing less than, A New Conservative Party built on the rock of our oldest values and best traditions.”
Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick are frontrunners to replace Rishi Sunak (Image: Getty)
He will call for a rejection of mass migration, focus on cheap, reliable energy, public sector reform and to build a more united country.
Mr Tugendhat will use his leadership speech to promise the nation that he will make them proud to vote Conservative again at the next election.
In a pitch to the party and nation, he is expected to say: “The Conservative Party’s brand is significantly damaged and the general election saw record levels of Conservative voters staying at home.”
He will add: I’ve had enough of Westminster’s political games, petty point scoring, and self-service. It’s not becoming of our great party or our great nation. We can do better. I am standing because what we need is leadership. I am standing to lead not just this party but to be the next Conservative prime minister of this great country.”
Meanwhile Mrs Badenoch will talk about her plans to dismantle the Tony Blair and Gordon Brown framework of increasing social, economic and legal control.
She will say that “the truth is the left never left”.
The former Business Secretary is expected to add: “The Conservatives have to be the party of wealth creation. Wealth is not a dirty word. It supports jobs and families. It pays for our schools, for our health service. We should encourage it.”
