I’ll stop boat crossings in 100 days, slash taxes & can be PM by 2030, says Nigel Farage as he launches Reform manifesto
NIGEL Farage vowed to stop the boats, pull out of the European Court of Human Rights and pause all but essential immigration within 100 days of a Reform government.
Insisting he could be PM by 2030, he called time on “population explosion”.
He said it was part of his red meat “contract with the people” that also offered up billions in tax cuts.
Despite declaring Britain “skint” he proposed £141billion of extra spending plans — with experts casting doubt on his sums.
And the Conservatives warned last night he was opening the door to Labour being in power for decades.
They blasted: “Labour are already planning to lower the voting age to 16, and we can expect votes for migrants, EU citizens, and prisoners to follow.
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“So a vote for Reform won’t mean five years of Labour, it would mean a generation.”
AT A GLANCE - REFORM 'CONTRACT'
IMMIGRATION
DITCH the European Convention on Human Rights, with zero illegal immigrants resettled in the UK. A new Department of Immigration will return boat migrants to France. Ban on international students bringing dependents to Britain.
TAX
RAISE the minimum income tax threshold to £20,000, exempting six million people, and increase the higher 40p rate threshold to £70,000. Stamp duty scrapped for properties under £750,000, inheritance tax abolished for estates under £2million, VAT on energy bills removed, fuel duty lowered by 20p per litre, and VAT reduced to 18 per cent.
POLICE
ZERO-tolerance policing will see life imprisonment for drug-related crimes and a substantial increase in stop-and-searches.
EDUCATION
A BAN on transgender ideology and the introduction of a patriotic curriculum in schools.
Mandatory exclusions for all violent children. Offer of two-year university courses.
ENVIRONMENT
NET Zero targets will be scrapped, saving £30billion annually, and new North Sea oil and gas licences will be fast-tracked.
HEALTH
CUT NHS waiting lists to zero within two years and exempt two million frontline healthcare workers from basic rate income tax for three years to retain and attract staff.
Patients to get vouchers for private treatment if NHS wait times are exceeded, with a 20 per cent tax relief on private healthcare.
DEFENCE
INCREASE defence spending to 2.5 per cent of national income within three years, and then to three per cent of GDP within six years. Recruitment of 30,000 full-timers into the Army.
WELFARE
A TWO-STRIKE rule for job seekers — with benefits being withdrawn from people who repeatedly turn down work.
But the Brexit frontman, 60, declared his “unashamedly radical” party would offer “real, genuine change” in a dig at both Sir Keir Starmer and PM Rishi Sunak.
The Reform leader, alongside its chairman Richard Tice, launched the document, “Our Contract With You”, in a rundown community centre in Gurnos, South Wales.
He said the decrepit building showed “exactly what happens to a country when Labour is in charge”.
It came hours after Mr Farage — wearing Union Jack socks — admitted for the first time he does have ambitions to enter No10 as PM within five years.
'This is our first big push'
Reform’s plans also include slashing income and corporation tax and cutting billions in woke public sector waste.
The Army would expand to at least 100,000 troops from its current 300-year low of 73,000.
And three per cent of GDP would go on defence — half a point higher than the current target.
Mr Farage also promised to radically reform the benefits trap, which he claimed “massively disincentives” going back to work.
In a speech marking the launch of the document, he conceded: “We’re not pretending we’re going to win this election.
“We are a relatively new party.
“This is step one.
“Our real ambition is the 2029 General Election.
“But this is our first big push.”
NIGEL TOPS THE POLLS
NIGEL Farage is Britain’s sexiest politician, a shock poll reveals.
The Reform UK leader, 60, won 23 per cent of the female vote, fending off competition from rugged ex-Army Tory Johnny Mercer and Labour chief Sir Keir Starmer to hit top spot.
But Rishi Sunak could only manage ninth, after topping the list in 2020. Jessica Leoni, at IllicitEncounters.com said: “Farage seems to channel that bad boy charm women can't resist.”
Blasting both big parties on migration, he fumed: “The reason millions voted for Brexit is we’d get back control of our borders.
“And none of that has happened.
“In fact, the opposite has happened.
“Some people say to me, ‘Nigel, that’s a failure of Brexit’.
“It isn’t.
“It’s the failure of a sovereign government.”
Mr Farage claimed: “The only way to fully restore sovereignty and decide who can come in and who can stay is by leaving that European Court of Human Rights.”
On taxes, he said the tax-free personal allowance would rise to £20,000.
Inheritance tax on estates worth under £2million and stamp duty on homes under £750,000 would be canned.
And the VAT threshold for small firms would rise to £150,000 from £90,000.
The cuts would be funded by £150 billion in savings.
These would include £50 billion in “wasteful” government spending and slashing funds to universities that suppress free speech.
Mr Farage’s return to frontline politics two weeks ago has been repeatedly slammed by PM Rishi Sunak and other Tories.
Yesterday, outgoing Tory big beast Michael Gove dismissed the Reform contract as “ridiculous”.
ANALYSIS: Does this all add up?
By MARTINA BET, Political Correspondent
NIGEL Farage insisted he unveiled a "contract" in place of a "manifesto," as the latter is often associated with the word "lie."
It is no secret that the Brexit supremo is trying to capitalise on discontent with the Tories and their long list of broken promises, particularly on immigration.
His choice of words this morning simply reinforced this narrative, tapping into widespread frustration and positioning himself as the honest alternative.
But their 24-page document isn’t a promise to deliver; it's just a list of what the party will be shouting about for the next five years - a mere direction of travel.
One thing people cannot accuse the document of lacking is radical proposals.
Among the promises are to stop the boats within 100 days, raise defence spending to 3 percent of GDP within six years, and eliminate income tax for those earning less than £20,000.
But does it add up? The extraordinary scale of extra spending, far surpassing that announced by the main two parties, includes £141 billion of additional expenditures.
On paper, it does, as they claim they can save £150 billion through measures like cutting government waste and benefits, taxing renewable energy sources, and businesses that employ immigrants.
It’s a bold move, but whether this "contract" is more than just hot air remains to be seen as there is an astonishing lack of detail.
One thing that remains true, however, is Farage’s ability to shake up the political landscape and by exploiting Tory failures, the Reform threat must not be underestimated.
Lord Cameron claimed Mr Farage was using “inflammatory language” and suggesting “hopeless policy.”
Hitting back at claims he was sacrificing Brexit, Mr Farage told The Sun: “I didn’t realise Lord Cameron was in favour of Brexit.
“Those who supported Brexit like Suella Braverman have been remarkably nice about me.
“And I think you’ll find if things go the way I hope that that wing of the Conservative party — literally only about 50 are real Brexiteers — they’ll find common cause with us.”
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Meanwhile, Reform chairman Richard Tice last night said he was prepared to “have a major row with the French” if they refused to take back asylum seekers picked up while crossing the Channel.
He told LBC: “Sometimes you have to have a row to get stuff done.”
Every weekday Sun Political Editor Harry Cole brings you the latest news and analysis from the election campaign trail.