MAHNOOR MEHR - YEAR 12
The political landscape of our world is changing rapidly. New figures, new ideas, and even the revival of old ones are taking hold of our politics in the UK and around the world. A large part of this can be attributed to the influence of the small, but increasingly influential far-right. This article examines the Conservative leadership race, Reform UK's rise, and the growing influence of billionaire Elon Musk.
After a devastating general election that left them with just 121 seats and a record-low vote share of 23.7%, former Prime Minister Sunak resigned as party leader, triggering a leadership race. At the Conservative Party conference in October 2024, the final four candidates—James Cleverly, Tom Tugendhat, Robert Jenrick, and eventual winner Kemi Badenoch—made their pitches to Conservative members. Their campaigns provide an excellent first case study for the current trajectory of British politics.
At the conference, Cleverly positioned himself as the most moderate candidate. He opened with an apology to the public for the decline in confidence in the party and emphasised the need for improvement. A recurring theme in his campaign was the importance of "[selling] the benefits of Conservatism with a smile." Despite leading in the third round of voting, he was unexpectedly eliminated. Meanwhile, the more right-leaning finalists, Badenoch and Jenrick, advocated for more extreme measures. Badenoch promoted her Renewal 2030 plan, which centred on defending traditional Conservative values and criticising progressive cultural and political shifts. Jenrick, on the other hand, branded himself as the heir to Thatcher (known best for her cuts to government spending in the name of economic growth, no matter the consequences on the British public), a name that remains highly divisive to this day.
Regarding the so-called "woke agenda," both candidates opposed the teaching of critical race theory. Badenoch, in particular, was a vocal critic of the Black Lives Matter movement. During her tenure as Women and Equalities Minister, she made her anti-trans stance clear, aligning herself with the trans-exclusive LGB Alliance, continuously making derogatory remarks about trans women and promising to bar them from women-only spaces if elected. Additionally, Badenoch attracted controversy for criticising the minimum wage as harmful to businesses and for calling maternity pay "excessive" and "having gone too far." Pro-tradition, pro-business, and committed to deregulation, she positioned herself as the right-wing favourite within the Conservative Party. On November 2, 2024, she was declared the winner of the leadership race.
This raises an important question: how did the most extreme candidate become the Conservative leader after such a crushing electoral defeat? Why not Cleverly, who focused on restoring unity and public trust and encouraged his party to "be more normal"? Instead, the Conservatives chose Badenoch, who prioritised identity politics, cultural issues, and aggressive deregulation, setting herself apart from the centre and left of the electorate. The answer is clear: the Conservatives now understand who they need to target to win the next election. To regain power, they must appeal to the voters they lost to Reform UK.
Both candidates focused their campaigns on migration and identity politics—likely an attempt to regain support from former Conservative voters who had abandoned the party due to scandals, policy failures, and, most notably, the cost-of-living crisis, and turned to Reform UK (formerly the Brexit Party), a right-wing populist party, which campaigned as the saviour of working-class Britain. Reform UK promised to scrap VAT on energy bills and environmental levies to lower household costs, while also pushing for stricter immigration policies and opposing so-called "woke ideologies," which they claimed were undermining the nation. This nationalist and traditionalist stance resonated with a significant portion of the electorate- although Reform UK secured only five parliamentary seats, they won 14.3% of the vote, placing third overall and finishing second in many constituencies. Given the novelty of the party, this result is astounding.
The far-right’s relentless campaigning in the leadup to this summer's election sets a troubling precedent, with one event showing the consequences taking place not long afterwards. The race riots of the summer of 2024 were a scene right out of 80s Britain. Online disinformation about the background of the Southport murders’ perpetrator, including a supposed Muslim background, as well as comments from Reform UK leader Nigel Farage questioning the investigation of the case, suggesting “the truth was being withheld” incited weeks of violent racist mob action across the UK, including an attack on a hotel in Rotherham housing asylum seekers on 4th August, which left more than 50 police officers injured.
Research from Savanta found 51% of the UK public believe that Farage was “personally responsible” for the violent protests. Notably, Badenoch was also criticised for keeping a low profile on the issue. Another key player, the world’s richest man and idol of the alt-right Elon Musk tweeted “Civil war is inevitable,” adding fuel to the flames. For this, he drew condemnation from the Prime Minister's official spokesman for escalating tensions.
This leads us to the growing influence of billionaire Elon Musk in UK politics. Having secured once unimaginable levels of influence over the US government, he has looked to Europe to widen his portfolio, as it were. Adopting the wince-inducing slogan “Make Europe Great Again”, Musk has begun talks with Reform UK as well as right-wing German party AfD. Farage was openly a fan of Musk, and for some time soon after Trump’s election win in November 2024, multiple news outlets speculated a possible £100 million donation from Musk to Reform UK, which would mark the largest political donation in British history. Such financial backing could significantly reshape the party's prospects, giving it newfound legitimacy and a stronger platform to challenge both Labour and the Conservatives.
However, the two fell out over the issue of Tommy Robinson, infamous racist and co-founder/de facto leader of the now-defunct English Defence League, who currently sits in prison after admitting contempt of court (unfairly influencing a court case) by repeating false claims against a Syrian refugee. Musk has previously called for the British government to “free Tommy Robinson” on X, and in January 2025, Robinson’s legal representatives thanked Musk on Telegram for offering to pay his legal fees. Farage has made it clear for a number of years that he does want to be associated with Robinson, and has strongly opposed any possibility of him joining the party as a member, likely due to the damage it would inevitably do to his credibility. This led to Musk calling for Farage to resign, posting on X, “The Reform Party needs a new leader. Farage doesn’t have what it takes.” However, this is not the end of Musk’s involvement in the UK. He revealed his cards with the alleged offer of that monumental donation and he and others will likely use their wealth in the coming years to attempt to influence our nation. A new political age of billionaires is dawning- one that our government should prepare for swiftly.
It now comes down to our new Labour government to bring these new threats under control: to handle the new wave of far-right radicalisation, curb the influence of billionaires who will try to push British politics in a direction that favours them and restore a sense of national unity. They will also have to consider the opposition party and limit their drift towards the right. We have now seen Starmer go head-to-head with Badenoch, and his strong leadership provides some quiet optimism that the Labour Party will be able to steer the nation towards stability and tolerance, although it is still early days for them. For now, we can only hope for the best.
Sources:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y9qypz3z3o
https://www.thepinknews.com/2024/11/03/kemi-badenoch-lgbtq-rights-gay-trans/#page/5
https://www.lbc.co.uk/news/nigel-farage-blames-tories-and-labour-lies-and-incitement-summer-riots/
https://www.politico.eu/article/elon-musk-fund-uk-far-right-ringleader-tommy-robinson-legal-fight/
Add comment
Comments