Tories attack Farage with socialist label and pledge billions in spending cuts

The Conservative Party has intensified its campaign against Nigel Farage and Reform UK, branding them as a party marching leftwards on economics while reaffirming their own stance on fiscal responsibility and significant public spending cuts.

Sir Mel Stride, the shadow chancellor, likened Farage to Jeremy Corbyn, asserting that Reform UK is now the party of increased spending and mounting national debt. Stride outlined tax cuts, such as scrapping business rates for shops and pubs, and a £5,000 national insurance rebate for young homebuyers, stating these would be financed through a planned £47 billion reduction in public spending, chiefly targeting welfare.

The Tories distinguished themselves by vowing to lower taxes when affordable, and only by specifying sources of funding. Stride criticised Labour’s economic plans as reckless, but directed much of his fire at Reform UK, highlighting their previous manifesto promises which included around £150 billion in tax cuts and new spending. In recent months, Farage has promised large welfare reductions, especially curbing access to benefits for non-British citizens, yet he has also pledged £3 billion to abolish the two-child benefit cap and pushed for the nationalisation of portions of the water industry and British Steel.

Claire Coutinho, shadow energy secretary, accused Reform UK of proposing unaffordable nationalisations and deeper borrowing, comparing their economic approach to Corbyn-era policies. She also committed the Conservatives to cutting energy bills by 20 per cent through removing green levies, claiming this would save families £165 annually.

Stride’s proposed cuts go further, including stopping disability claims for milder mental health conditions, slashing foreign aid to 0.1 per cent of GDP, and reducing more than 130,000 civil service jobs. He cautioned against repeating the fiscal missteps seen during the Liz Truss government and maintained that tax cuts would only be announced alongside detailed funding sources.

Reform UK swiftly dismissed the Conservative criticisms as lacking credibility, noting their leader’s pledge to significantly reduce welfare expenditure and to completely halt benefits for non-British citizens. A party spokesman pointed out that under Conservative governments, the benefits bill and national debt both soared.

Recent polling suggests half of the Conservative membership would prefer that Kemi Badenoch not lead the party into the next general election, with a significant majority backing an electoral pact with Reform. Only a small minority anticipate a Tory majority at the following general election, underlining the ongoing turbulence within party ranks.