Overview
- Nigel Farage publicly invited trade unions to apply to affiliate with Reform UK and to attend the party’s national conference in September, offering policy engagement and pledges such as redress for British Steel pension victims.
- Major unions and Labour figures rejected the overture as disingenuous, with Unison and GMB saying Reform’s voting record and proposals would weaken workers’ rights and cut public‑sector jobs.
- Recent polling has shown growing support for Reform among union members, with a JL Partners survey finding Labour and Reform tied on 28% of the union vote, a dynamic Reform says it is seeking to capitalise on.
- The immediate political test for the strategy is the June 18 Makerfield by‑election and whether any union leaders engage with Reform before the September conference.
- Trade unions founded the Labour Party in 1900 and about 11 still affiliate, so any shift in formal ties would mark a significant change in Britain’s party‑union landscape and could reshape working‑class voting patterns.