UK Conservative Politics

  • Farage pumps Reform

    Reform UK began their annual conference in Birmingham yesterday. Its recent electoral triumph boosted the profile of the alternative conservative party beyond its small beginnings, and introduced a new generation of voters to a fresh, energetic brand.

    @Nigel_Farage – X

    Nigel Farage MP (Clacton/Reform UK) rose to speak at the end of the afternoon, and took the auditorium by storm. He pumped it with an enthusiasm only he has. It’s no small feat to rally an audience at the NEC, especially in a time when conservatives feel jaded.

  • Profile: Baroness May of Maidenhead

    Baroness May, the former Prime Minister and now Peer in the House of Lords, grew up in Oxfordshire and went to St Hugh’s College, Oxford. She has experience in finance, having worked at the Bank of England, and in politics, having served as Maidenhead’s MP for 27 years.

    Her tenure as Prime Minister followed her appointment as Home Secretary, during which she had control over much of the policy that affected the UK state. Her entrance to Number 10 therefore was on the back of a greater understanding of the social makeup of the nation.

    It led to her agenda-setting policy initiatives while in office. She’s also particularly known for sponsoring the Modern Slavery Act 2015. It helped frame the criminal acts over the English Channel by traffickers to transport people illegally into slavery here.

    She’s known for her outspoken politics and tendency to speeches that helps to communicate her ideas and values. She believes in opportunity in particular and understands challenges as obstacles society can overcome by state-led intervention and personal initiative.

  • Lowe attacks Tories

    Rupert Lowe MP (Great Yarmouth/Reform UK) has given his maiden speech in the House of Commons today. He took a swing at the Conservative’s record on immigration.

    “Uncontrolled mass immigration has failed Great Yarmouth, as it has failed the entire country. Just like the majority of the rest of the country, in 2010 they voted for lower immigration. In 2015, they voted for lower immigration. In 2016, they voted for lower immigration. In 2019, they voted for lower immigration. What did the Conservatives do? They allowed immigration to soar, with no thought to the brutal consequences.”

    He also said employees are struggling in the “real” economy because of socialism. He quoted Margaret Thatcher by saying he backs “workers, not the shirkers”.

  • Profile: Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton

    Lord Cameron was born in Marylebone, London, in 1966. After he studied at Eton and Oxford he worked for the Conservative Party, in media, as well as other roles.

    His political career began as MP for Witney, Oxfordshire, in 2001. He became a member of the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee the same year.

    He held other positions including Shadow Education Secretary before he was elected in 2005 as leader of his party. He became Prime Minister in 2010 after the resignation of Gordon Brown, leader of the Labour party.

    He was re-elected in 2015 and held a referendum of the UK’s membership of the European Union in June 2016. He campaigned for the Remain side. He resigned as Prime Minister following the Leave result.

    He’s since written a memoir, acted as advisor to a number of overseas companies, and spoken at events across the world. In 2023 he became Foreign Secretary as well as made a peer in Rishi Sunak’s government.