Wait goes on for Great British Railways HQ decision
No decision has yet been made on the location of Great British Railways' (GBR) headquarters in Derby, two years after it was confirmed the city would host the site.
The publicly-owned body will oversee the rail system across England, Wales and Scotland.
Legislation to create the body is expected to be put before Parliament this autumn.
Possible sites mooted for its location have included Becketwell, Derby Works, Midland House, Pride Point and RTC Derby.
The Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said on a visit to East Midlands Railway's headquarters in Derby that she was "clear" the organisation needs to be "up and running in 2027", after the project was met with delays in the past.
However, she could not commit to an announcement on the location in 2025.
"We've got to take some legislation through Parliament first," she told the BBC.
"The HQ will be in Derby, 100%. We're really excited about it, I think it's a great opportunity for this fantastic city.
"The precise location of the HQ hasn't been determined yet but I will work closely with the local councillors, with the local MPs and make sure that we get a perfect base for this fantastic new public sector organisation."
Derby is already home to the UK's largest train factory, which employs about 2,000 people.
In May 2021, former transport secretary Grant Shapps announced plans for GBR to be set up, saying it would replace an "overcomplicated and fragmented" system.
In March 2023, the government announced Derby had beat off competition to host the organisation.
It was initially due to be launched in early 2024, but the implementation date was delayed.
The leader of Derby Conservatives Steve Hassall said the lack of any news on a location would be of "great frustration for the public, who really got behind the campaign [to house the HQ in Derby]".
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Departure of Reform UK chair Zia Yusuf is latest in a long line of Farage fallings-out
Delivered without warning in a 54-word tweet, Zia Yusuf's announcement that he was standing down as Reform UK's chair has seemingly come out of the blue. For close watchers of Nigel Farage's party in recent times, however, the departure of the man largely credited with 'professionalising' its operation before last year's general election performance and last month's local election breakthrough is not a shock. A self-described 'British Muslim patriot', it had not been hard to find Islamophobic commentary about Yusuf among users of Reform UK Facebook groups. Others who left the party – or who have been ejected from it – were angered by his corporate approach, which they blamed for making it a cold house for grassroots veterans and mavericks. In his 11 months as Reform's chair, Yusuf brought with him the ethos and language that might be more associated with a vibrant tech start-up than a hard-right British political party. A businessman who made a fortune from selling his luxury concierge service, Velocity Black, in 2023 for a reported $300m, Yusuf exploded on to the political scene last June by donating a six-figure sum to Farage's party. The two men had known each other for years, having met at a party hosted by the former Ukip treasurer Stuart Wheeler. In his new role at Reform, Yusuf oversaw a restructuring of the party from branch level upwards, pledging to introduce bespoke technology and enforce the tightest vetting of any political party in Britain in a bid to root out cranks and extremists. At rallies, he was a regular speaker, initially wowing the grassroots and earning the discreet praise even of political rivals. He was often one of the few non-white people in the room and was the living embodiment of Farage's insistence that Reform was not a racist party. As recently as Monday, Farage sought to fend off allegations of racism and xenophobia being levelled at Reform, by pointing out at a press conference in Scotland that his party's chair was Scottish born and had 'parents who come from the Indian subcontinent'. But there had long been rumours that all was not well in Reform, not least after the falling-out that led to the departure of its Great Yarmouth MP, Rupert Lowe. Aside from the online abuse, Yusuf is said to have been increasingly at odds with other senior figures in the party. This week's controversy over comments in parliament by Reform's newest MP, Sarah Pochin, in which she called on the prime minister to ban the burqa, appears to have been the straw that broke the camel's back. Yusuf wrote on X that it was a 'dumb' question, given that was not party policy. For some time, Farage and Yusuf appeared to be joined at the hip, frequently appearing side by side, but the party leader did not come in behind his young chair on the Pochin issue. Yusuf's tweet on X announcing his departure was as blunt as it gets. Crediting himself with having 'quadrupled Reform's membership and delivered historic electoral results', he added: 'I no longer believe working to get a Reform government elected is a good use of my time.' The response from Farage – also delivered, as custom now dictates, on X – was, on the surface, laudatory, with the leader describing him as 'a huge factor in our success'. Yet, a paternalistic tone was obvious. 'Politics can be a highly pressured and difficult game and Zia has clearly had enough,' Farage said. Looking back at the longer sweep of the Reform UK leader's political career, the parting of ways is on brand. Farage's time in charge of various parties – from Ukip to the Brexit party – has been littered with fallings-out. There is, as many of his admirers and critics agree, room for only one trailblazer at the top of any Farage-led party. However, at a time when Reform is riding high in the polls, the departure of Yusuf comes with a serious question. Could this be the thread that unravels the seemingly unstoppable Reform juggernaut?
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Zia Yusuf quits as Reform UK chair after row over new MP's call for burqa ban
Zia Yusuf has resigned as the chair of Reform UK after suggesting it was 'dumb' of the party's newest MP to ask the prime minister if he would ban the burqa. Yusuf, a donor and businessman, said he was resigning after less than a year in the job because he did not believe working to get a Reform government elected was a good use of his time. His departure is a blow to Nigel Farage as he tries to professionalise his rapidly growing party, with political rivals saying it shows the Reform leader cannot work with other senior figures without falling out. Yusuf, who is Muslim, quit after a dispute about the party's handling of its position on the burqa. Sarah Pochin, the new Reform MP for Runcorn and Helsby, had pressed Keir Starmer on the issue in parliament on Wednesday, and Farage had also said on GB News that it was time for a debate about the burqa. Hours before resigning, Yusuf had posted on X saying it was 'dumb' for a party to have asked the prime minister to ban the burqa when it was not its own policy. In a statement on X, Yusuf said: 'Eleven months ago I became chairman of Reform. 'I've worked full-time as a volunteer to take the party from 14 to 30%, quadrupled its membership and delivered historic electoral results. I no longer believe working to get a Reform government elected is a good use of my time, and hereby resign the office.' Yusuf has been working on Reform's new Elon Musk-style 'department of government efficiency' (Doge) unit looking at cutting spending in councils where the party is in control. The tech entrepreneur Nathaniel Fried, who was brought in this week with great fanfare to lead the unit, will also be departing alongside Yusuf, leaving the party's plans to slash 'waste' in local government in disarray. 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'It's already clear Reform UK cannot deliver for the communities they are elected to stand up for. Instead, they have copied the Conservative playbook of fighting like rats in a sack.' A Labour party spokesperson added: 'If Nigel Farage can't manage a handful of politicians, how on earth could he run a country? He has fallen out with everyone he has ever worked with. Reform are just not serious.' The turmoil in Reform comes on a crucial day for the party in Scotland, where it is hoping to make headway against the Scottish National party and Labour in the Hamilton Scottish parliament byelection. Only on Monday, Farage had held up Yusuf as an example of why Reform should not be accused of racism, as he spoke at a press conference in Aberdeen. 'I would remind everybody that the chairman of the party is Scottish-born, but comes from parents who come from the Indian subcontinent. But we don't talk about race at all. We think everybody should be treated equally. 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Tice defends Reform MP's question on burqa ban after Zia Yusuf resignation
Reform UK was right to start a debate on banning the burqa even though it triggered the resignation of its chair, Richard Tice, the party's deputy leader, has said. Tice, who is one of five Reform MPs, said he was 'enormously sad' that Zia Yusuf had quit as chair as he was partly responsible for the party's strong performance in May's local elections. But Tice said politics could be brutal and defended Reform's choice to raise the issue of a burqa ban, saying the discussion must not be 'forced underground' when it was a policy in a number of European countries. Related: Departure of Reform UK chair Zia Yusuf is latest in a long line of Farage fallings-out Tice told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'I think it is right that we should have a debate about whether or not the burqa is appropriate for a nation that's founded in Christianity, where women are equal citizens and should not be viewed as second-class citizens.' Asked whether he supported a ban, he said he was 'pretty concerned' about whether the burqa was a 'repressive item of clothing', adding: 'Let's ask women who wear the burqa, is that genuinely their choice?' Tice also dismissed claims that Yusuf's departure showed Nigel Farage struggles to retain senior figures after the Tory leader, Kemi Badenoch, said it demonstrated that Reform was a 'fanclub' not a political party. 'Kemi Badenoch is just jealous that she doesn't have any fans at all,' Tice said. Yusuf, who is Muslim, resigned as the chair of Reform UK on Thursday after suggesting it was 'dumb' of the party's newest MP, Sarah Pochin, to ask the prime minister if he would ban the burqa. Yusuf, a donor to Reform and a businessman, said he was resigning after less than a year in the job because he did not believe working to get a Reform government elected was a good use of his time. The new Reform MP for Runcorn and Helsby had pressed Keir Starmer on the burqa in parliament on Wednesday and Farage had also said on GB News that it was time for a debate about the burqa. Hours before resigning, Yusuf had posted on X saying it was 'dumb' for a party to have asked the prime minister to ban the burqa when it was not its own policy. In a statement on X, Yusuf said: 'Eleven months ago I became chairman of Reform. 'I've worked full-time as a volunteer to take the party from 14 to 30%, quadrupled its membership and delivered historic electoral results. I no longer believe working to get a Reform government elected is a good use of my time, and hereby resign the office.' Yusuf has been working on Reform's new Elon Musk-style 'department of government efficiency' (Doge) unit looking at cutting spending in councils where the party is in control. The tech entrepreneur Nathaniel Fried, who was brought in this week with great fanfare to lead the unit, will also be departing alongside Yusuf, leaving the party's plans to slash 'waste' in local government in disarray. Polly Billington, a Labour MP in Kent, said: 'Reform are pitching to be a party of government, but the utter shambles we have seen so far on Kent county council will be of huge concern to voters who want to be sure our roads, buses and children's services are in good hands. 'More than a third of council meetings have already been cancelled this month, where vitally important decisions are made for our county, and two of the five members of 'Doge for Kent' have quit after less than a week. Reform need to get a grip and bring an end to this unprecedented chaos.' Yusuf has been close to Farage over the past year and the party leader is upset about his chair going, according to Tim Montgomerie, a Reform supporter and commentator. Yusuf's exit is likely to add to the impression that Farage struggles to retain senior figures in his parties. In a statement, Farage said he was genuinely sorry that Yusuf had decided to stand down as Reform UK chair. He said: 'As I said just last week, he was a huge factor in our success on 1 May and is an enormously talented person. Politics can be a highly pressured and difficult game and Zia has clearly had enough. He is a loss to us and public life.' Farage expanded on the reasons for Yusuf's departure on GB News, saying he could tell even before the burqa row that the chair had had enough and was 'very disengaged'. He said he was sad and paid tribute to Yusuf's organisational skills, but also suggested he had weaknesses. Farage, revealing that he had had 10 minutes' warning of the resignation, said: 'When people have exceptional strengths in some areas of their life, or other areas where perhaps they're not quite so strong, I think, in terms of dealing with staff there was a bit of a Goldman Sachs-type mentality. I mean, politics is different. 'And I think when you come from the background he comes from, say, Goldman Sachs, where he worked, it is a really tough, brutal environment. Politics isn't like that. Politics isn't just about creating a financial bottom line, it's about doing things that are thoughtful, creative and different. 'So were his interpersonal skills at the top of his list of attributes? No. But I always found, with me, he was very polite, very objective in conversations that I had.'
