More than half of Reform UK members believe non-white British citizens born abroad should be deported or encouraged to leave, according to a recent poll of the party’s membership. The findings come as the party leader, Nigel Farage, attempts to broaden the party’s appeal while facing challenges from its right flank.
Reform UK Membership Views on Citizenship
According to research published by the anti-racism group Hope Not Hate (HnH), 54% of Reform UK members believe non-white British citizens born abroad should be forcibly removed or encouraged to leave. Additionally, 22% supported similar measures for non-white citizens whose parents were born in the UK.
The poll, conducted by Survation, surveyed 629 Reform UK members between January 29 and February 16. Reform UK reported having approximately 270,000 paid-up members as of December.
HnH described the findings as evidence of internal tensions within Farage’s party. Its chief executive, Nick Lowles, stated that a dilution of Reform’s policies to attract moderate voters could lead to disillusionment among its existing members.
Support for Right-Wing Rivals
The poll also revealed considerable support among Reform UK members for rivals of Farage on the right, including Rupert Lowe and Tommy Robinson. Two-thirds of members expressed a positive view of Lowe, who recently launched Restore Britain and advocates for mass deportations.
HnH, which has monitored the far right for decades, is raising concerns about the rise of a more explicitly racial nationalism, defining English identity by “blood and ancestry.” The group warns that this ideology promotes solutions like “remigration,” which it describes as a repackaged form of ethnic cleansing and forced repatriation.
The report highlights a connection between racially charged views on identity, pushed by far-right activists following the Black Lives Matter movement, and recent statements by Reform UK figures such as Matthew Goodwin and Suella Braverman.
Goodwin, who recently lost a byelection, has refused to disown his claim that UK-born people from minority ethnic backgrounds are not necessarily British, stating, “It takes more than a piece of paper to make somebody ‘British’.”
Last year, Konstantin Kisin claimed that Southampton-born Rishi Sunak was not English, sparking an online debate. Braverman responded by stating she was a proud British Asian but not English.
Growth of the Far Right
HnH reports that the UK’s far right is now “bigger, bolder and more confrontational.” Restore Britain is creating a realignment on the far right, attracting support from across its spectrum, though the coalition remains fragile.
The “unite the kingdom” rally in London, led by Robinson, is highlighted as a significant event, drawing more than 150,000 participants – the largest far-right protest in British history. Polling by Focaldata indicates that a quarter of the British population identifies positively with Robinson’s movement.
Robinson is currently in the US, where he has been received by rightwing figures, including a political appointee at the state department and a congressman.
The report also noted 251 anti-migrant protests throughout 2025, including a wave of demonstrations that began in Epping outside a hotel housing asylum seekers and have persisted through the winter months.
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