Reform UK has announced their shadow cabinet, in a bid to seem ready to govern, after announcing at their Time for Reform rally their plans to do so. Although their Shadow Cabinet does not have the same weight as that of the Official Opposition, the Conservative Shadow Cabinet, it seems Nigel Farage is attempting to transform Reform’s reputation, from that of anti-establishment populism, to serious policy scrutiny. But, who exactly has been given a role within Reform’s top team, and why?
Richard Tice
First, Richard Tice, whom has already been promised Deputy Prime Minister, has been designed lead of a new department of business, energy and industry. This role merges several departments, thus Tice shall presumably be replacing Ed Miliband, the current Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Minister, and Peter Kyle, the current Secretary of State for Business and Trade. But why has Tice, who is high up in the Reform ranks, been assigned such an insignificant role within the Shadow Cabinet?
Prior to joining Reform, Tice was a business tycoon and multi-millionaire, owning several financial companies, therefore has the most extensive, and also perhaps most legitimate, business experience within the Cabinet. However, Tice has previously criticised scientists for arraigning fuel dependence as the cause of climate change, although admits that UK infrastructure needs to be adapted to roll back the frontiers on global warning. If Reform manages to form a future government, Tice has confirmed they’d cut minimum wage and fight the war on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) hirings within industry.
Zia Yusuf
Next, Zia Yusuf, the former Chairman of Reform, was announced as shadow Home Secretary, pledging to reduce both legal and illegal migration. Previously, Yusuf has been vocal about immigration legislation, criticising Labour for their rhetoric around the Border Security, Immigration and Asylum Seekers Act, stating that Shabana Mahmood, although ideologically in line with Yusuf, would never be able to achieve her border control goals, for fear of being deemed racist by Labour backbenchers. In this role, Yusuf will presumably be Reform’s spokesperson against Mahmood.
Perhaps Yusuf’s appointment is the most controversial, considering he is neither an MP nor an elected politician by any means, yet his association within Reform is simply a result of enormous donations to the Party. Yusuf stood down as Chairman in June 2025, stating that he no longer believed working to get Reform in government was the best use of his time. However, critics have argued that his resignation was a misognistic attack against Reform MP Sarah Pochin – hours prior to his resignation, Pochin utilised her maiden speech in Parliament to call for a ban on the burka, rhetoric that other, notably male, Reform politicians had expressed. However, Yusuf had never publicly expressed criticism of the Party until Pochin arrived on the scene. Sarah Pochin is Reform first and only elected, not defected, female MP.
Yusuf has also been accused of anti-semitism against newly defected Reform MP Robert Jenrick and his wife, after Yusuf was found to have liked an X post that referred to Jenrick as a “Zionist traitor.”
Robert Jenrick
Regarding Robert Jenrick, he has been announced as Reform’s Shadow Chancellor, a position that Jenrick has been supposedly vying to get, after rumours that both Tice and Yusuf were keen to take the job. Jenrick has served in Government under four Conservative Prime Ministers, and up until recently, he served in Kemi Badenoch’s Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Secretary of State for Justice. Whether promoting such a prominent ex-Conservative to Reform’s top team will be beneficial for the Party is yet to be seen, although Jenrick arguably has had considerable success in previous roles. Jenrick is one of the most popular members of Reform for his hard stances on immigration, in particular, whilst resigning for his position as the Minister for Immigration under Rishi Sunak, he stated that the Rwanda Act was not harsh enough, although Jenrick’s experience in the Treasury is quite lacking.
In his first address as Shadow Chancellor, Jenrick pledged to reinstate the two-child cap on benefits, limit access to welfare to British nationals only, require clinical diagnoses for those claiming to suffer from mental illnesses to access disability benefits, whilst also pledging to conduct a mass tax code review, one of which hasn’t been conducted since Nigel Lawson‘s tenure as Chancellor under Thatcher. This implies that Reform are poised to implement austere governing, a sharp contrast from their earlier economics.
Indeed, these policies seem rather Thatcherite in nature, which could be beneficial for Britain, if executed with care. However, Reform’s plans regarding tax reform remain vague, thus Jenrick, although impressive rhetorically, still has much to prove.
Suella Braverman
Finally, Suella Braverman, former Conservative Home Secretary under Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, has been appointed as Head of Education, Skills and Equalities, a rather considerable demotion. In this role, Braverman has declared a “war on woke ideology” within schools, deeming educational reform to be her top priority. She has stated that gender transitioning will be banned within the classroom, repealing Labour’s current transgender guidance within schools.
Braverman also pledged to repeal the Equality Act of 2010, which currently protects nine characteristics from discrimination in the workplace and in general. Her reasoning for this is based upon the claim that “white, working class boys” have the lowest rates of educational success, suggesting that inclusivity in schools has enabled those from socially disadvantaged backgrounds to excel disproportionately. The truth of this is debatable, although it is possible that not all individuals who benefit from diversity schemes have been disadvantaged as compared to those who are unable to access social mobility schemes.
In addition, Braverman has promised Reform will attempt to ensure 50% of young people go into trades rather than university, a direct reversal of Tony Blair’s attempts to get 50% or more into universities. Unlike Jenrick, Braverman has not been successful in government, in particular regarding immigration, failing to pass the same Rwanda Act that Jenrick resigned over. Perhaps under Reform, Braverman may excel, although previous data proves otherwise.
Overall, Farage’s appointments within the Shadow Cabinet reveal much about the future of Reform. No longer does Farage want to appear as populist opposition, or as a party of protest. Whether Reform can transform themselves into a party of policy formulation and serious scrutiny is imperative for them to consolidate their base and appear as a government-in-waiting. If, as Jenrick has repeatedly declared, Britain is indeed broken, can this Shadow Cabinet fix it? Will the present of two significant ex-Conservative ministers prevent cohesion and collaboration? This all remains to be seen, although one thing is clear,. Reform UK is changing, and with it, the state of British politics.