GB News paused their live coverage as they spoke directly to Nigel Farage amid the local elections. Reform UK’s gains include winning control of its first London borough in Havering, surging to victory over the Tories in Essex and Suffolk, and picking up seats at the expense of Labour in the Midlands and the north of England. The party came second in the Welsh Parliament elections behind Plaid Cymru while party figures said they would be “competitive” in Scotland.
The Reform leader said he believes a “truly historic shift in British politics” was showing it could win in Conservative and Labour heartlands, adding he expected the support from voters would not be a “one-off” in a humiliating blow to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.
The politician suggested Reform UK had “blown apart” the current government and the two-party political system on Friday.
Speaking to GB News, Nigel commented: “Forget Brexit and think of it as a mindset. And if you believe Britain is broken, that it needs fundamental change and reform, then we’re the guys out there saying it.
“What I find really interesting is the old idea that a party that is on the right and it attracts votes in a certain area, or its on the left and for socio-economic reasons it attracts votes in that area we’ve just blown that apart.”
He added, “The old ideas of left and right have literally been blown apart in the last 24 hours.”
Increased support for Reform saw them take control of councils from Labour, including Barnsley, Wakefield, Sunderland and Gateshead, and shift Hartlepool, Tameside, Redditch and Tamworth to no overall control.
A third of the seats were up for election in Wigan, with Reform winning 24 out of 25 as Labour suffered heavy losses to see its majority on the council reduced.
Starmer has insisted he will not quit as prime minister and “plunge the country into chaos”.
The results in England, Scotland and Wales have piled pressure on Sir Keir, with some Labour MPs calling for him to set a timetable for his departure, although his cabinet allies have backed him for now.
Labour has also lost power in Wales, ending its 27-year rule.
