Reform is dangerously close to appearing more Left-wing than the Tories

Telegraph

06-08-2025

Farage wants you to know that he's not just staunch on immigration – he's also tough on crime. At a press conference this week the party leader unveiled a raft of new proposals, including a push for US style 'supermax' prisons, an end to wokeness in the criminal justice system and more data on the relationship between crime and the asylum system.
But I still have the sneaking suspicion Reform aren't quite as tough as they want you to believe they are, not least if their two recent hires are anything to go by. Vanessa Frake, a former head of security in a prison and Reform UK's new justice adviser, immediately made headlines over her stance on transgender prison inmates. When asked on Times Radio if she believed all transgender women should be removed from women's prisons, she answered 'no, I don't think so'. Asked if he agreed with Ms Frake's stance, Mr Farage said on Monday 'I've personally never worked in a prison, so I can't answer it' then distanced himself from her comments yesterday by stating that 'I have never supported men in women's prisons'.
This isn't Frake's only view to the Left of Reform's stated policy. She has repeatedly opposed twelve-month prison sentences. Last year she argued in two separate interviews that there is 'no point sending someone to prison for under 12 months' and that 'there are a lot of people in prison who shouldn't be there.' This is quite surprising, given that 99.5 per cent of crimes don't result in a jail sentence. Even Labour haven't yet got rid of short-term prison sentences. Is Frake to the Left of Shabana Mahmood? Yes, Frake is just an advisor, and her views aren't necessary party policy. But why would Farage hire someone who publicly espouses a much softer approach to crime than the general public?
Perhaps this embarrassment is the inevitable consequence of attempting to fill party ranks in a relatively short period of time – a problem not helped by Reform's insistence in recruiting a parade of unimpressive former Tories. Take this week's second hire, Rupert Matthews, the Conservative Police and Crime Commissioner for Leicestershire and author of such tomes as Alien Encounters and Unexplained Ancient Mysteries. There's no evidence Matthews is a criminal policy titan – Leicestershire police force is currently rated 'requires improvement' for investigating crime and responding to the public – but Reform have lapped up the defection. The same goes for Jake Berry, a pro net zero Remainer who served as Conservative party chairman under Liz Truss, inexplicably boosted as a major defector by Farage.
Another problematic Tory get is Linden Kemkaran, a former Conservative candidate turned Reform leader of Kent County Council. Shortly after assuming office, Kemkaran wrote to the Government to express 'grave concern' about planned tightening of requirements for health and care visas: a pro-migration stance that is hardly ideal for a rising star in the party.
Farage has been on a journey. He veers wildly over whether he wishes to deport illegal migrants. The urge to reach a larger share of the electorate will ring in the siren call of 'moderation'. But continued sloppiness over hires could leave Kemi Badenoch's Tories looking like the real Right-wing alternative to Labour.