Since its foundation as the Brexit Party in 2018, Reform UK has grown in members, media coverage, and influence, gaining five parliamentary seats and 3.5 million votes between the 2019 and 2024 general elections. The Party now promises economic and social reform by preventing illegal immigration and improving government efficiency.
Reform UK’s policies — “critical reforms” — were published in 2024 in a document titled Our Contract With You. Primarily, they’ll stop non-essential immigration, deport “illegal migrants,” reduce NHS waiting lists to zero, lower income tax, and scrap Net-Zero.
To begin with: immigration. Farage pledges to “secure Britain’s borders to protect wages, our public services, and British culture and values.” This rhetoric of protecting British culture has been echoed by many, most recently by using St George’s flag to make immigrants feel unwelcome. Other more recent examples include assault, arson, and vandalism during the summer 2024 race riots, primarily as a result of ingrained racism and a victim mindset.
However, Reform is also at fault: labelling asylum seekers “illegal,” distinguishing between “foreign” and “local,” while simultaneously teaching a highly contestable version of history that, while discussing imperialism or slavery alongside “non-European occurrence of the same”, promotes an “us versus them” mentality, further ostracising immigrants. In a university setting, this language — which I would argue extends beyond free speech by “othering” and demonising non-Brits — has a lasting impact on impressionable young people who want change (and perhaps someone to blame).
Reform promises to reduce free speech through plans to “ban transgender ideology” in schools, regulate social media’s promotion of “baseless transgender ideology and divisive Critical Race theory,” scrap DEI, and legislate against allegedly anti-democratic left-wing ideologies. To evolve and improve as a society, we need to cultivate acceptance by teaching transgender and racial histories instead of enabling ostracisation and oppression, yet Reform UK promotes censorship
Farage is also condemning the future by ditching Net Zero and £10bn of renewable energy subsidies. These promises are damaging and contradict all expert advice. Reform doesn’t care about young people or future generations. It won’t matter if we save (allegedly) £30bn per year in the public sector by scrapping Net Zero if we destroy the planet. In contrast, the University of Edinburgh promises to become zero carbon by 2040, putting the society at loggerheads with the University.
The pledge also promotes a “Zero Tolerance Policy:” drug dealing constitutes a life sentence. Reform won’t address the causes — class-correlating issues like addiction, debt, and poverty — but they’ll fund training 40,000 police officers and building 10,000 detention centres. One could argue that this policy is classist (working-class people are already overrepresented in the prison system), opposes free speech, and stigmatises discussions about drugs. It’s unclear how this will be funded and how reducing the tax-paying workforce will enable economic prosperity.
In conclusion: Should Reform be platformed on campus? Even simple details like language can indoctrinate people, particularly impressionable students who want a government promising economic and social change. Platforming the Party at the university allows the spread of misinformation and hate speech, ostracising trans people, people of colour, immigrants, and the working class and prompts a more divided, prejudiced, and potentially violent society.
“Zia Yusuf addresses Reform UK 30th June 2024 – Birmingham NEC” by Z979 is marked with CC0 1.0.
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Reform Shouldn’t be Allowed on Campus
Since its foundation as the Brexit Party in 2018, Reform UK has grown in members, media coverage, and influence, gaining five parliamentary seats and 3.5 million votes between the 2019 and 2024 general elections. The Party now promises economic and social reform by preventing illegal immigration and improving government efficiency.
Reform UK’s policies — “critical reforms” — were published in 2024 in a document titled Our Contract With You. Primarily, they’ll stop non-essential immigration, deport “illegal migrants,” reduce NHS waiting lists to zero, lower income tax, and scrap Net-Zero.
To begin with: immigration. Farage pledges to “secure Britain’s borders to protect wages, our public services, and British culture and values.” This rhetoric of protecting British culture has been echoed by many, most recently by using St George’s flag to make immigrants feel unwelcome. Other more recent examples include assault, arson, and vandalism during the summer 2024 race riots, primarily as a result of ingrained racism and a victim mindset.
However, Reform is also at fault: labelling asylum seekers “illegal,” distinguishing between “foreign” and “local,” while simultaneously teaching a highly contestable version of history that, while discussing imperialism or slavery alongside “non-European occurrence of the same”, promotes an “us versus them” mentality, further ostracising immigrants. In a university setting, this language — which I would argue extends beyond free speech by “othering” and demonising non-Brits — has a lasting impact on impressionable young people who want change (and perhaps someone to blame).
Reform promises to reduce free speech through plans to “ban transgender ideology” in schools, regulate social media’s promotion of “baseless transgender ideology and divisive Critical Race theory,” scrap DEI, and legislate against allegedly anti-democratic left-wing ideologies. To evolve and improve as a society, we need to cultivate acceptance by teaching transgender and racial histories instead of enabling ostracisation and oppression, yet Reform UK promotes censorship
Farage is also condemning the future by ditching Net Zero and £10bn of renewable energy subsidies. These promises are damaging and contradict all expert advice. Reform doesn’t care about young people or future generations. It won’t matter if we save (allegedly) £30bn per year in the public sector by scrapping Net Zero if we destroy the planet. In contrast, the University of Edinburgh promises to become zero carbon by 2040, putting the society at loggerheads with the University.
The pledge also promotes a “Zero Tolerance Policy:” drug dealing constitutes a life sentence. Reform won’t address the causes — class-correlating issues like addiction, debt, and poverty — but they’ll fund training 40,000 police officers and building 10,000 detention centres. One could argue that this policy is classist (working-class people are already overrepresented in the prison system), opposes free speech, and stigmatises discussions about drugs. It’s unclear how this will be funded and how reducing the tax-paying workforce will enable economic prosperity.
In conclusion: Should Reform be platformed on campus? Even simple details like language can indoctrinate people, particularly impressionable students who want a government promising economic and social change. Platforming the Party at the university allows the spread of misinformation and hate speech, ostracising trans people, people of colour, immigrants, and the working class and prompts a more divided, prejudiced, and potentially violent society.
“Zia Yusuf addresses Reform UK 30th June 2024 – Birmingham NEC” by Z979 is marked with CC0 1.0.
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