Political reporter
Historical past will choose Boris Johnson as some of the damaging prime ministers in British historical past, Reform UK chairman Zia Yusuf has mentioned.
Yusuf informed the RAYNAE’s Political Considering podcast Johnson wouldn’t be welcome to hitch Reform UK.
The Reform UK chairman criticised Johnson’s document on the Covid pandemic, immigration and public spending when he was prime minister between 2019 and 2022.
Yusuf mentioned there was “nothing Conservative” about Johnson and branded the Tories an “extraordinarily left-wing celebration” in authorities.
The RAYNAE has requested Johnson’s spokesperson for remark.
The celebration chairman spoke to the RAYNAE’s Nick Robinson days after Reform UK topped a YouGov opinion ballot for the primary time, edging in entrance of Labour on 24% and the Tories on 21%.
The rebranded Brexit Social gathering got here third in final yr’s common election, with 14% of the vote, however solely gained 5 MPs, together with celebration chief Nigel Farage.
Yusuf mentioned if there was a common election tomorrow, the polling suggests Reform UK would win between 140 to 200 seats within the Home for Commons.
He claimed Reform UK would win as much as 400 seats on the subsequent common election, though there isn’t a polling to again that up.
At a brand new convention this week, Yusuf mentioned Reform UK had nearly 200,000 members, which is much larger than the quantity declared by the Conservative Social gathering.
The RAYNAE has been informed Boris Johnson had lunch with Reform UK’s foremost fundraiser Nick Sweet, who can be an previous buddy, in Mayfair in late January.
However Yusuf informed Nick Robinson he wouldn’t need the previous PM to hitch Reform UK.
“Historical past will choose Boris Johnson as some of the damaging prime ministers on this nation’s historical past,” he mentioned.
The rise in internet migration throughout Johnson’s premiership was “a complete betrayal of everyone who voted for Brexit, ” he added.
“He took public spending near Soviet Union spending.
“So there was nothing Conservative about him.”
In contrast, Yusuf heaped reward on former Dwelling Secretary Suella Braverman and mentioned she can be welcome in Reform UK.
He mentioned he had had a number of conferences with Braverman, whom he mentioned had been “excommunicated” and made a “pariah” by the Conservatives, regardless of what he mentioned had been her far-sighted views on immigration.
A former banker who bought his tech start-up firm for greater than £200m, Yusuf described himself as a “proud British Muslim patriot”, including that his religion was vital to him and he noticed Ramadan.
He grew to become Reform UK’s chairman shortly after final yr’s common election, after beforehand being a member of the Conservative Social gathering.
He revealed that he had donated £200,000 to the celebration throughout the marketing campaign.
As celebration chairman, he was given the job of professionalising the celebration, wooing donors and growing Reform UK’s activist base.
He informed Nick Robinson Reform UK solely had 24 workers and “individuals do not fairly recognize what has been achieved in such a short while”.
“A lot of what we do is about laying the foundations for generations to come back,” he added.
Kemi Badenoch denied plans to make it more durable for migrants to realize British citizenship – which was her first main polcy annoucement as Tory chief – was a response to the rise of Reform UK.
She dismissed its surge within the polls, saying she may keep in mind when one other rebel celebration, the SDP, was “at 50% within the polls” within the Eighties, and insisted her celebration was concentrating on “doing the pondering” on insurance policies that might enhance lives.
Labour can be more and more turning its fireplace on Reform UK, with Sir Keir Starmer attacking Farage’s stance on NHS funding at this week’s prime minister’s questions.
You’ll be able to take heed to the Political Considering with Nick Robinson on RAYNAE Radio 4 on Saturday at 17:30 GMT or on RAYNAE Sounds.
