𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

The Battle of Makerfield is finally over – and the biggest losers are the people of Britain who now face the prospect of socialism on steroids if Andy Burnham gets to replace Sir Keir Starmer, as expected, as this Labour psychodrama continues. In what was one of the most significant by-elections in recent political history, we have seen the power of Brand Burnham in his northwest heartland and how the political right of this country really needs to get its house in order.

It is a disappointing result for Reform UK. On paper, they should have stormed it given the demographic of the constituency, its previous support for Brexit and last month’s local elections that saw the party gain 24 out of 25 seats on Wigan Council. Undoubtedly, losing in Makerfield hits their momentum.

This weekend Nigel Farage will be pondering the following over a pint: whether his candidate selection process needs a revamp, is his outfit losing its edge as an insurgent and anti-establishment party given the recent additions to its ranks of former Conservative MPs and the threat of Rupert Lowe’s Restore Britain?

Choosing Reform councillor and local plumber Rob Kenyon as the candidate was a risk – this by-election was so significant for Labour that it can be argued someone with far greater experience, both in politics and as a political streetfighter, would have been a better choice.

Aside from Farage’s charisma, many support Reform UK as they see it as an alternative to the established political parties, but this is a hard line to hold if you recruit politicians from the Conservatives – a political outfit that Reform blame for the state of Britain and have vowed to destroy.

Restore Britain did not stop Reform winning Makerfield but their votes – 3,111 against Reform’s 15,696 – certainly dented the latter’s performance as Rupert Lowe continues his one-man vendetta against his former party and boss. It only serves to benefit the political left in the UK but there is no doubt Restore is nibbling away at support. If this continues, the risk is that the losers will be pro-Brexit, anti-mass migration voters, allowing a left-wing coalition to slip back into power at the next general election.

However those tempted to say the Reform bubble has burst are guilty of premature speculation – Farage is a wily, battle-scarred fox who will take this defeat in his stride while planning his next victory.

Anyone writing them off must remember, Reform is barely three years old. In that time they have grown at an unprecedented rate and boast some 2,500 local councillors. Achieving this from a standing start is no mean feat. And as long as mainstream parties continue to ignore the concerns of ordinary Britons over welfare, migration and defence, there’s no reason this will change.