Reform UK’s unusual structure with Nigel Farage in the middle

Reform UK’s leadership calls it an “entrepreneurial political start-up”. Uniquely, the rightwing populist party is also structured like one, with Nigel Farage at its centre.

Arch-Brexiter Farage heeded the lessons from his years running a UK Independence party beset by infighting when he helped found Reform in 2018 as a limited company with a few directors responsible for its management.

Though he stepped back from frontline politics three years ago, Farage has remained a director and majority shareholder. He is also honorary president.

Ahead of this year’s general election, Farage’s role within the party is being interrogated by the broadcasting watchdog Ofcom. In March, the regulator launched an investigation into rightwing broadcaster GB News over whether Farage was in breach of impartiality rules that prevent politicians acting as news presenters.

Farage, however, disputes being called a politician. Responding to the investigation, he told GB News viewers on March 4 he had held “no executive or fiduciary responsibility” for Reform for several years and was neither an activist nor candidate.

“Perhaps there’s a bit of establishment pressure being put on the regulator,” he said, adding: “I don’t know, but I tell you what folks, you want to come and pick a fight with me, I’m ready anytime you like.”

Ofcom on Wednesday stopped short of an outright ban on the use of politicians as presenters but warned broadcasters about the importance of impartiality ahead of this year’s general election. It has previously put GB News “on notice” over the issue.

The regulator’s guidance does not explicitly state whether its definition of a politician includes a party’s director or majority shareholder. But as a company director, Farage has a set of fiduciary responsibilities under the UK Companies Act.

“Farage had adopted a prominent role within the party, it’s hard to see how he sits on both fences,” said Rupert Cowper-Coles, a partner at law firm RPC. “If it looks like a politician, and quacks like one, then it’s probably a politician.”

Reform’s current leader Richard Tice has floated the idea of his predecessor returning as an election candidate but sought to dispel rumours that he would take the party’s helm.

But as Farage owns 53 per cent of Reform UK Ltd, according to company filings, he is able to remove Tice as a director or take the decision to unilaterally dissolve the organisation, marking him as the party’s ultimate kingmaker.

Tice has a minority holding of around one-third of all shares, while chief executive Paul Oakden and party treasurer Mehrtash A’zami each hold less than 7 per cent.

As a threat on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s right flank, Reform’s influence has grown. It is averaging around 12 per cent in the Financial Times’ poll tracker, as the ruling Conservatives lose more centrist voters to Labour and the Liberal Democrats.

You are seeing a snapshot of an interactive graphic. This is most likely due to being offline or JavaScript being disabled in your browser.

Tice has attributed some of this progress to the party’s structure. “In fast-growing entities, someone at the top has to make a decision,” he told the FT.

Reform’s set-up is rare. UK political parties are traditionally formed as unincorporated associations composed of a membership, rather than established as corporate entities. Their rules are usually set out in a written constitution, while party affairs are handled by a committee chosen by members.

Matthew Goodwin, the Conservative academic, said Reform had been shaped by the “ongoing factionalism and internal disputes” that plagued Ukip. “Tice and Farage have learned from the past,” he said.

Some parties register subsidiary companies for commercial purposes or to manage assets, while local associations or clubs that undertake business activities do the same.

All political parties, including Reform, are required to separately register with the Electoral Commission and comply with obligations under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (PPERA).

PPERA requires a party to register office holders including the party’s leader and treasurer with the Electoral Commission.

The input of Reform’s thousands of members, who each pay £25 in annual fees, into party affairs is constrained.

“Members do have a say, because we have conferences. We’ve had over a dozen different policy groups that fed into our draft contract [the party’s election manifesto],” Tice said.

Ben Habib, Reform’s co-deputy leader, said the current structure was necessary to make swift decisions. “At the moment it’s a fantastic model because it helps us cut through, because we’re an insurgent party,” he said.

However, he conceded that a private company, where control is vested in two people, was likely to be unsustainable in the long term.

GB News has played a prominent role in elevating the visibility of Reform’s leadership alongside News UK’s Talk TV channel, where co-deputy leader David Bull hosts a programme.

“The establishment massively underestimates the reach of GB News outside the M25. The further you go the more people are watching it,” Tice said.

Gill Hind from Enders Analysis, a consultancy, said Ofcom had been caught on the back foot and was trying to play catch-up.

“The Ofcom rules need to be revisited if it’s [based] on the understanding that we want our broadcasters to do impartial news, because that’s for the good of people and aiding democracy,” Hind added.

A spokesperson for Farage said: “[Nigel] Farage does not play an active role or fulfil a statutory position in Reform UK as defined by PPERA. He considers himself a broadcaster and not a politician, having held no elected office since Brexit happened.”

GB News said: “GB News chose to be regulated and continues to take its obligations seriously.”

Farage has not outlined whether he plans to stand as a candidate in the upcoming general election. Doing so would require him to leave his lucrative role as a television host around a month before voters take to the polls.

Should he remain with the rightwing broadcaster during the election, he will be placed under heightened rules on due impartiality.

Tice noted the party was likely to change its structure eventually but did not consider the move urgent as members input, though welcome, was not always necessary. “Overall advisers advise, directors decide,” he said.