A week after a historic result, signs of discontent are emerging regarding Farage’s leadership of the party. With Ben Habib contemplating the possibility of resignation “in the next couple of days”, is Farage’s party really in trouble?
Yesterday, Ben Habib tweeted that he was soon to be removed as Deputy leader of the Reform Party and replaced with Richard Tice. Habib revealed that he had “long-held concerns about the control of the party and the decision-making processes” and that he was “considering my position more generally”. In an interview with TalkTV, he again contemplated the prospect of leaving Reform, however, reiterated his support for the party.
Habib’s “concerns” with the “decision-making process”, are likely an allusion to Farage, whose control of the party has caused him to clash with Habib on several occasions. When following comments about ‘Islamists’, Nigel Farage welcomed Lee Anderson into the party, Ben Habib, who was born in Pakistan, expressed opposition to Anderson’s comments and his potential membership. During the election, Habib endorsed DUP candidates rather than the TUV, the more hard-line Unionist party that Farage pledged alliance with.
With Ben Habib seemingly questioning Farage’s leadership, just an individual grievance or is there something deeper?
What Does this Mean for Reform?
“This is just a natural part of our growth plan”, Tice reassured Talk TV viewers when asked about Habib’s ejection, insisting that his removal was part of a plan to “professionalise” and “expand” the party. Tice went on to deny that there was a “civil war” in the party, reiterating that his removal was part of a broader plan to move the party from a small party
The Reform Party’s goals appear to shift depending on whatever ideas Nigel Farage has at the time of an interview. Initially supportive of the prospect of a merger, Farage now opposes the idea, wanting to build a launching pad for a viable challenge to become the governing party in 2029. As part of this, Farage has claimed that yesterday’s leadership shuffle is “the first step to ensure that Reform UK is fit and ready to take forward its positive message”. If this truly is Reform’s plan, then yesterday’s events don’t bode well.
Yesterday’s incident has come across as infighting, weakening their case to be taken seriously. This yesterday was, however, emblematic of Farage’s inability to consider other party members as independent actors. In 2019, Farage utilised the then-Brexit Party’s lack of a constitution to exercise unchallenged control of the party. When replacing Tice as leader, Farage allegedly only informed Tice that he would be stepping down two hours before he would announce it on live television. According to the same insiders, Reform’s Clacton candidate only found out he would be replaced by watching his leader tell the public on the same television address.
Farage’s name recognition is central to Reform’s sucess, and he knows it. The fact that until this week, it was unclear whether one of Reform’s candidates was AI-generated is a good illustration of how little the par. Until now, every party Farage has led has had extremely limited government power, with the charismatic Farage therefore being the only source of authority. Now, Reform has seats, and Farage seeks to create a “professional” party made up of full-time MPs. For the first time, Farage isn’t the only one with power.
And yet Farage’s leadership style has changed little. If history is anything to go by, Farage’s decision was likely made unilaterally, with little thought paid to the potential fallout of an ungracious sacking. Whilst Reform is selling these actions as modernising the party, the clumsy execution shows a regression to the Farage-centrism of UKIP. The sacking of Ben Habib is a sign of the impulsive, unilateral decision-making that will make a Reform parliamentary party so difficult.
Final Thought
Is this the beginning of a civil war in the Reform Party? Almost certainly not. Habib, although liked by many of the Reform base and being slightly more moderate than others in the leadership, doesn’t represent a clear ideological wing that might rally others to his side. However, although Habib’s replacement in itself doesn’t represent a threat, the clumsy Reform execution of this decision is only the most recent casualty of Farage’s leadership. If Reform’s strategy is to become a true political party, rather than influence the Conservatives, yesterday shows why they are likely to fail.
For more of Chamber UK’s analysis concerning the new political landscape please click here.
