Reform UK has announced its new top team as Nigel Farage seeks to prove his party is not a “one-man band”.
As Reform is not the official opposition – and only has eight MPs – the four new roles are not part of a formal shadow cabinet. Those with portfolios will be the party’s spokespeople on specific issues.
Politics latest: Farage ‘quite proud’ of forcing local elections U-turn
However, Mr Farage insisted his party was “the voice of opposition” to the Labour government as he unveiled his first frontbench appointments.
Two of the four given spokesperson roles are recent Conservative defectors – and the most experienced politicians, having both been senior ministers.
Robert Jenrick – economy
Mr Jenrick, a former communities secretary under Boris Johnson, was named Reform’s economic spokesman barely a month after joining the party from the Tories.
He said he would be “a voice for the millions of people who are being failed by this Labour government” and pledged Reform would put together “the most comprehensive plan of any political party… to fix Britain’s broken economy” and cut the welfare bill.
Having switched from the Conservatives in January after being unceremoniously ousted by Tory leader Kemi Badenoch when his defection speech was found on a photocopier by staff, Mr Jenrick was one of Reform’s biggest signings.
The former housing secretary, immigration minister and shadow justice secretary has previously denied being offered a role within Mr Farage’s top team before defecting.
Richard Tice – business, trade and energy
Mr Tice will head up Reform’s business, trade and energy policies, and proposed a new “super department” aimed at increasing growth to 4% of GDP.
He said the UK needs cheap energy to be a rich nation, which involves using its oil, offshore and onshore gas.
Mr Tice said the party would focus on using oil and gas to help boost the economy and would abandon net-zero targets.
The multi-millionaire businessman-turned-MP led Reform for three years until Mr Farage decided, ahead of the 2024 election, he was going to be leader instead.
A net-zero sceptic, Mr Tice has been the party’s deputy leader since then and was elected as Boston and Skegness’s MP in 2024, having served as an MEP for the East of England prior to that.
Zia Yusuf – home affairs and justice
Mr Yusuf, who is not an MP, will take the lead on home policies, including immigration.
The multi-millionaire businessman, whose medic parents came to the UK from Sri Lanka in the 1980s, said the sheer scale of immigration over the last three decades “has broken Britain”.
He said if Reform won the next election the party would “stop the boats”, deport illegal immigrants, leave the ECHR, take on “radical Islam” and forcibly deport foreign criminals.
Mr Yusuf, the party’s former chair, has served as head of policy and was previously head of Reform’s department of government efficiency.
The multi-millionaire was Reform’s largest donor in the run-up to the 2024 general election and has become a prominent spokesman, especially on immigration.
Suella Braverman – education, skills and equality
Reform’s latest Conservative recruit, and as a former home secretary – the party’s most experienced MP – Ms Braverman will head up its education policies.
A former chair of Britain’s “strictest school”, Michaela Community School, she said Reform would replicate the school’s success across the UK, “restore freedom to our schools and restore authority to our teachers”, while delivering a “patriotic, balanced curriculum”.
She promised to ban “social and gender transitioning” in all schools and to ensure fewer people go to university with 50% of young people going into the trades instead.
Ms Braverman said Reform would get rid of the equalities department and build a country “defined by meritocracy not tokenism, personal responsibility not victimhood, excellence not mediocrity, and unity not division”.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
The remaining Reform MPs who have not been given a job:
Lee Anderson – chief whip, ex-Tory and the first sitting MP to defect to Reform
Sarah Pochin – Reform’s first female MP after winning the Runcorn and Helsby by-election in May 2025
Danny Kruger – former Conservative shadow minister who defected in September 2025
Andrew Rosindell – the longest-serving MP (he has been Romford’s MP since 2001), who defected from the Tories in January
