This is an extract from Nigel Farage’s keynote speech at Reform UK’s conference, The First 100 Days, on 4th September.
Today we make the 100-day pledge. Our pledges are clear. We will stop the boats within the first 100 days of government. End of.
And today’s historic agreement, signed on this stage with Jordan Bardella, on behalf of Marine Le Pen, really means we can do this. We can succeed.
We will, as Richard Tice said to you earlier, cut energy bills by £250 and end the Net Zero lunacy that is deindustrialising and destroying the British economy.
We will boost NHS training. It’s monstrous. We don’t produce enough of our own nurses and doctors, and we rely on importing them from around the rest of the world. It’s mad.
And Suella Braverman will also talk about student tuition fees and the fact that we are sending far too many young people to university. You’ll hear some quite radical plans from Suella.
And from Robert Jenrick. His 100-day pledge will not only be to slash benefits spending in a big way, but to cut taxes on working people and pensioners in a radical way.
And you’ve heard me say before: we are the party of Alarm Clock Britain. They are going to love these packages.
But I repeat the point: these aren’t vague, empty promises. These are pledges that we must deliver in the first 100 days of government, or those individual ministers will have failed. Indeed, we, as a government, will have failed. We believe in jeopardy. We believe in accountability. And we will do everything - everything within our power - to make this happen.
Some will say - and there’ll be many sceptics in the room - how can you achieve this, given the obstacles that are in front of you?
We will declare a national emergency. All parliamentary recesses will be cancelled. Parliament will sit, if necessary, for 24 hours a day, six days a week, until we pass the necessary legislation. And our policies will be explicit in our offering document to the British people.
And I expect the House of Lords to honour that, as it has done with the Salisbury Convention for over a century. But if it doesn’t, well, we’ll present it with an idea. It’s not a new one; it’s been used before.
We’ll appoint hundreds of new peers so that we have a majority in the House of Lords.
And if that proves difficult, we’ll hold a referendum on the current composition of the House of Lords, and it would be swept away by a British public appalled by it.
Now, the other obstacle, of course, could be the judiciary. We don’t want the courts striking down the will of the people, do we? But ultimately, it is Parliament that makes the law. And we’ll remove the ability of judges to lean on outdated conventions such as the European Convention on Human Rights, which will be gone, gone, gone.
Parliament makes the law; judges interpret the law. We will do whatever it takes and perhaps have to consider how judicial appointments work in the future.
And the same goes for the Civil Service. If we are elected with a majority on clear manifesto promises, it is the job of the Civil Service to make sure we can carry them out on behalf of the people in a democratic country.
But if civil servants try to obstruct us, they will be removed from their posts and replaced by people from outside - from the world of business.
This plan is bold. It is ambitious. But it’s much needed. Britain is broken, and only Reform has the courage, the conviction and the foresight to fix it. And I really, truly believe that. I really do.
And I’m tired. I’m tired of being told what can’t be done. I’m tired of being told: “Oh, we couldn’t do it because of this. We couldn’t do it because of that.” That is not what the public want. The public want action. The public want genuine change. The public do not want any more of the same. And our attitude is can-do and will-do.
Believe me when I say I mean this. I have never been in politics for rank, title or career. There are many other things on this planet that I can go and do. But I’m doing it, and I’ve been doing it on and off for 35 years, because I’ve always fought for a sovereign, proud, independent country that understands what it is, respects its history and is ambitious, energetic and entrepreneurial.
I’m only here because of the failure of our political class. And I am determined to lead Reform to victory at the next general election. That is my job.
Leadership matters, but so do you, because you’re all part of this incredible People’s Army that we’ve built up. I’m proud of you, and I hope you’re proud of the role you’re playing in changing political history - in changing the future of this country.
Watch the conference livestream here.
Today we make the 100-day pledge. Our pledges are clear. We will stop the boats within the first 100 days of government. End of.
And today’s historic agreement, signed on this stage with Jordan Bardella, on behalf of Marine Le Pen, really means we can do this. We can succeed.
We will, as Richard Tice said to you earlier, cut energy bills by £250 and end the Net Zero lunacy that is deindustrialising and destroying the British economy.
We will boost NHS training. It’s monstrous. We don’t produce enough of our own nurses and doctors, and we rely on importing them from around the rest of the world. It’s mad.
And Suella Braverman will also talk about student tuition fees and the fact that we are sending far too many young people to university. You’ll hear some quite radical plans from Suella.
And from Robert Jenrick. His 100-day pledge will not only be to slash benefits spending in a big way, but to cut taxes on working people and pensioners in a radical way.
And you’ve heard me say before: we are the party of Alarm Clock Britain. They are going to love these packages.
But I repeat the point: these aren’t vague, empty promises. These are pledges that we must deliver in the first 100 days of government, or those individual ministers will have failed. Indeed, we, as a government, will have failed. We believe in jeopardy. We believe in accountability. And we will do everything - everything within our power - to make this happen.
Some will say - and there’ll be many sceptics in the room - how can you achieve this, given the obstacles that are in front of you?
We will declare a national emergency. All parliamentary recesses will be cancelled. Parliament will sit, if necessary, for 24 hours a day, six days a week, until we pass the necessary legislation. And our policies will be explicit in our offering document to the British people.
And I expect the House of Lords to honour that, as it has done with the Salisbury Convention for over a century. But if it doesn’t, well, we’ll present it with an idea. It’s not a new one; it’s been used before.
We’ll appoint hundreds of new peers so that we have a majority in the House of Lords.
And if that proves difficult, we’ll hold a referendum on the current composition of the House of Lords, and it would be swept away by a British public appalled by it.
Now, the other obstacle, of course, could be the judiciary. We don’t want the courts striking down the will of the people, do we? But ultimately, it is Parliament that makes the law. And we’ll remove the ability of judges to lean on outdated conventions such as the European Convention on Human Rights, which will be gone, gone, gone.
Parliament makes the law; judges interpret the law. We will do whatever it takes and perhaps have to consider how judicial appointments work in the future.
And the same goes for the Civil Service. If we are elected with a majority on clear manifesto promises, it is the job of the Civil Service to make sure we can carry them out on behalf of the people in a democratic country.
But if civil servants try to obstruct us, they will be removed from their posts and replaced by people from outside - from the world of business.
This plan is bold. It is ambitious. But it’s much needed. Britain is broken, and only Reform has the courage, the conviction and the foresight to fix it. And I really, truly believe that. I really do.
And I’m tired. I’m tired of being told what can’t be done. I’m tired of being told: “Oh, we couldn’t do it because of this. We couldn’t do it because of that.” That is not what the public want. The public want action. The public want genuine change. The public do not want any more of the same. And our attitude is can-do and will-do.
Believe me when I say I mean this. I have never been in politics for rank, title or career. There are many other things on this planet that I can go and do. But I’m doing it, and I’ve been doing it on and off for 35 years, because I’ve always fought for a sovereign, proud, independent country that understands what it is, respects its history and is ambitious, energetic and entrepreneurial.
I’m only here because of the failure of our political class. And I am determined to lead Reform to victory at the next general election. That is my job.
Leadership matters, but so do you, because you’re all part of this incredible People’s Army that we’ve built up. I’m proud of you, and I hope you’re proud of the role you’re playing in changing political history - in changing the future of this country.
Watch the conference livestream here.
