Reform to launch manifesto in Wales ‘to show what happens when Labour in charge’

Nigel Farage is set to unveil Reform UK’s manifesto, which the party dubs a “contract” with voters, in Wales on Monday.

Speaking ahead of the event, the Reform leader said he is “launching a crusade to defend British values” and that the location was chosen “because it shows everyone exactly what happens to a country when Labour is in charge”.

He will set out Reform’s policies in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, at 1pm before taking media questions.

Mr Farage said: “One of the reasons we are launching our contract with the people of Britain in Wales is because it shows everyone exactly what happens to a country when Labour is in charge.

“Schools are worse than in England, NHS waiting lists are longer than in England, Covid restrictions were even tighter than in England and now Welsh motorists are being soaked by literally hundreds of speed cameras to enforce the deeply unpopular new 20mph blanket speed limit in towns and villages.

“Since devolution, the Welsh have been ignored by the London political establishment and let down by the Labour administration they elected.

“So, if you want a picture of what the whole country will be like with a Starmer government and a feeble Conservative opposition, come to Wales and then hear us unveil a better future for all of Britain”.

The arch Brexiteer also tweeted: “I am launching a crusade to defend British values.”

The party will fight the election on immigration, with policies already announced including an “employer immigration tax” on companies who choose to employ overseas workers instead of British citizens.

Reform UK has vowed to freeze lawful immigration with the exception of healthcare workers and leave the European Convention on Human Rights.

It has promised there would be no tax on earnings under £20,000 a year, that it would abolish the Government’s net-zero targets and “stand up for British culture, identity and values”.

A poll last week showed Reform edging ahead of the Conservatives for the first time, with Mr Farage’s party at 19% and the Conservatives on 18% in voting intention.

However, Reform’s lead was within the margin of error, and other polls published since then have showed Mr Farage’s outfit trailing the Tories.

When Rishi Sunak called the General Election, Mr Farage initially said he was not running and would instead focus on getting Donald Trump re-elected in the US in November, but in a U-turn on June 3 he announced he would stand to be an MP for an eighth time.