The revolution will be televised

Reform’s annual conference, which kicks off today, is more than a rally; it’s a stress test for whether the party can truly look like a government-in-waiting rather than just a protest vehicle. If Nigel Farage’s insurgents do well in the huge May 2026 election cycle, the potential Reform revolution will start to look less like something to wind up your leftie (and Tory) friends with and more like something to start seriously planning for.

The scale of the conference alone is striking. Over 6,000 attendees are expected. Sponsorship has come from the likes of Heathrow, TikTok, JCB and Japan Tobacco International. There are big rumours about various pyrotechnics installed at the main stage for a ‘big moment’.

The line-up is also full of Westminster crossovers. Michael Gove is set to interview Reform’s Head of DOGE, Zia Yusuf, while former MP and GB News pundit Jacob Rees-Mogg joins a democracy panel with historian David Starkey. And with Gibraltar, Israel and Albania sending representatives, Reform is actively pitching itself as something more than a sideshow. Ex Tory Minister Nadine Dorries is the latest defection and will introduce Farage’s speech today at 4pm.

Reform wants people to take away the idea that the party has a built out policy platform - that they are more than a protest party and are ready to grip the reins of power with a radical agenda of, well, reform. But are mass deportations powered by quitting international human rights treaties and a huge prison-building programme really what business wants to hear? What is the Reform plan on taxes, Bank of England independence and getting homes built? What do they have to say to the international companies creating jobs in the UK to help deliver low-carbon electricity?

Business has all these questions and more besides. Perhaps we will start to get a clue on some of them this weekend.

And the timing of this weekend's conference couldn’t be better for Farage. Angela Rayner’s stamp duty confession of underpaying tax on her £800k flat has put Labour on the defensive this week. Rachel Reeves has also set the Autumn Budget date for November 26, forcing the government further into a high-stakes media spotlight amid furious speculation over which taxes she’ll need to raise.

The wider context is momentum. Reform is polling far ahead of Labour in most surveys. May 2026 brings elections to the Scottish and Welsh Parliaments, all the London boroughs and dozens of Labour-held town halls. Keeping up the pace without any embarrassing gaffes or scandals is priority number one for this conference.

In short, we should expect fireworks and wipe out coverage in the papers and on TV bulletins (unless Rayner quits at lunchtime, anyway).