Latest news with #ZiaYusuf
Bloomberg
2 days ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
In the City: Is the UK Anti-Immigrant Reform Party Ready for Power?
According to new polling, the far-right party led by Nigel Farage now stands at 34% support, nine points ahead of Labour and well ahead of the Conservatives. Hosts Francine Lacqua and David Merritt sit down with Zia Yusuf, head of Reform UK's own 'Department for Government Efficiency,' to explore the party's rapid ascent and the political undercurrents driving it.
Spectator
4 days ago
- Politics
- Spectator
Why is the National so scandalised by my Spectator internship?
Last week, I had the privilege of interning with the broadcast team at The Spectator – a magazine that has been stirring up debate since 1828. True to form, my arrival seemed to do the same. A Scottish newspaper managed to spin my internship into something resembling a scandal because I'm currently a sitting councillor in Renfrewshire. The whole thing would be flattering if it wasn't so confusing. I suspect the real issue is not the internship. It is my defection – and my decision to challenge the political orthodoxy of the mainstream parties According to the National, 'a Scottish Reform defector has been called out for taking a new job with the London-based Spectator magazine.' It's certainly true that I recently joined Reform after leaving the Labour party, but the claim that I have 'taken a job' at The Spectator is news to me and, I suspect, to payroll. To be clear, I was there for the week. The internship had no effect on my council duties. After my shift each day, I completed my casework as usual and posted regular updates for residents on Facebook. I suspect the real issue is not the internship. It is my defection – and my decision to challenge the political orthodoxy of the mainstream parties. Papers like the National can't even comprehend why someone would consider joining Reform. But given the state of our politics, it should be obvious why people like me are defecting. Britain is not just facing challenges – it is being actively failed. Public services are collapsing. The tax system punishes aspiration. The immigration system is broken. The old parties offer only minor tweaks to a system that clearly doesn't work. Reform UK is the only party offering structural change. At the moment we have a political environment where delivery is deprioritised, and honest debate actively discouraged. Far too often, performance has taken the place of purpose. In Holyrood, a parliamentary day was spent debating who should use which toilets – while town centres are in decline, businesses close, crime increases, and essential services are underfunded. We're told 'there's no money' – except when it's for political virtue signalling, net zero campaigns, or the latest quango. The scale of the waste is dumbfounding. Zia Yusuf, through his Doge unit, is beginning to uncover evidence of industrial-scale mismanagement in local government. Kent County Council, for example, is currently spending £350 million on a four-year contract – not to deliver vital frontline services, but for recruitment services. While roads deteriorate and housing crumbles, we are spending hundreds of millions on bureaucracy. It perfectly illustrates how skewed our priorities have become. Nowhere is that more obvious than with net zero, which is well-intentioned but economically disastrous. The UK contributes just 1 per cent of global emissions, yet we've hamstrung our own energy sector for the sake of political virtue signalling. We import oil and gas while sitting on abundant domestic resources. Reform will issue new North Sea licences, get drilling, and create jobs – reducing our reliance on foreign energy and making Britain prosperous again. I was originally drawn to Labour as the party of the working-class. But being 'working class' isn't just about income, it's about values: pride in work, belief in fairness and a desire to get on in life. Increasingly, what I saw from Labour was a mindset that treats aspiration as something suspect. If you come from a deprived background, you're expected to settle for less – not reach for more. Reform UK understands that people want more than just survival. They want dignity, opportunity, and the chance to succeed on their own terms. It's a party that believes in backing ambition and getting the basics right. That is why I joined – because that's what the country needs. I saw this in Larkhall, walking alongside Nigel Farage when he visited Scotland earlier this month. People saw someone speaking plainly, listening carefully and understanding the reality they live every day. That's something few modern politicians even attempt – let alone achieve. Some have claimed I left Labour to advaance my own career. The truth is, staying would have been far easier. I could have kept my head down and climbed the internal ladder. But that isn't why I came into politics. Labour currently has a landslide majority in parliament yet no clear vision. Nearly a year into government, the Prime Minister visits the Red Wall not to offer investment or renewal – but to warn voters about Nigel Farage. Labour fears Farage because he speaks to one of the largest and most overlooked voting blocs in British politics – the millions who no longer vote at all. The mainstream parties have written these people off. They focus on swing voters and their traditional base, not those who feel politics has nothing to offer them. Nigel Farage and Reform UK are taking a different approach. They understand that politics isn't just a competition to govern – it's about changing lives. It's the same energy that drove Brexit – a movement powered not by elites, but by ordinary people demanding real change. And it will be the same force that reshapes politics again in 2029 when Reform is elected to government. Britain needs new energy, new ideas, and a new approach. I left Labour not out of convenience, but out of conviction. And I will continue making this case – even if that makes me unpopular with Scotland's less credible newspapers. And in the meantime, I'd recommend The Spectator internship to anyone. It's like being welcomed into a family – assuming your family makes podcasts before breakfast, produces weekly political commentary, and accidentally causes a media storm just by inviting you over.
The Independent
5 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Farage says non-dom policy ‘very attractive' despite tax expert cost warning
Nigel Farage has insisted Reform UK's proposed change to non-dom tax rules was 'very attractive' despite an expert warning the policy could cost the UK £34 billion. The party leader said he was 'not clever enough' to answer questions about the suggested hit to Britain's economy but dismissed criticism as 'off-the-wall nonsense' as he held a press conference on Monday. Mr Farage also batted away suggestions that his plan for a so-called Britannia Card was a 'profoundly left-wing concept' as he was asked whether the announcement was a bid to win votes from low-income workers. Reform has said it would reinstate non-dom status for wealthy individuals in exchange for a £250,000 one-off fee which would be given to Britain's poorest workers. Under the 'Britannia Card', non-doms would be offered a 10-year renewable residence permit and a return to the controversial arrangement whereby overseas income can be shielded from UK tax. They would also avoid inheritance tax, with the one-off payment then being distributed to Britain's bottom 10% of earners. Announcing the policy in central London on Monday, Mr Farage said: 'Many talented people are leaving, and we want as a party as many entrepreneurs, as many risk-takers, as many job creators, as many people paying lots of tax, as many people investing huge sums of money – we want as many of them as possible to be in our country.' Reform chairman Zia Yusuf added: 'The reality is that even the term non-dom has become, you know, these people have been made to feel persona non grata… there's a narrative that has been created that these people contribute nothing. 'So we have to set right that, too.' It comes as Dan Neidle, founder of Tax Policy Associates, claimed the policy would cost the UK £34 billion, warning that some highly skilled and highly paid professionals would not be able to afford the £250,000. The Office for Budget Responsibility has assessed that recent Labour and Conservative reforms to the non-dom status raise a net £33.9 billion from 2026/27 to 2029/30. This sum is generated from a small number of very wealthy people who Mr Neidle said would opt to buy a Britannia Card and pay no tax, meaning the revenue would be lost. Because the £250,000 one-off payment would be redistributed, none of the money raised would reduce the impact on the public finances, he said. The Labour Government abolished the non-dom tax status in April, which is where UK residents whose permanent home or domicile for tax purposes is outside Britain. Mr Farage was asked about the analysis on Monday and was also pressed on whether he had an overall costing for the policy. 'Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. I'm not clever enough to answer any of that,' he said. 'That just sounds completely off-the-wall nonsense. I'm really sorry, but I think what we've got here is a very attractive offer. ' People are fleeing this country in droves. Our economy is in trouble. There are fears of wealth taxes coming in. All the mood music is bad.' The party leader said he believed 'tens of thousands of people' would come to the UK 'on this ticket' if Reform is successful. 'Even if after lots have come, we're going to get a trickle, not a flood, provided they're still paying their average £120,000-a-year income tax, provided they're still investing the billions that they do in business, in job creation, in risk – I tell you what, we'll be in a much better place than we are right now,' he said. Asked if he was attempting to give low-income workers free money to win over their votes, the Reform UK leader told reporters: 'Nice try, but the idea that I'm somehow putting forward a profoundly left-wing concept today could not be further from the truth. 'We're saying we want people who make loads of money to come in to Britain in huge numbers and pay lots and lots of tax and buy lots of houses and spend lots of money.' Rachel Reeves said Reform's announcement amounted to 'a tax cut for foreign billionaires'. Speaking during a visit to the West Midlands, the Chancellor said: 'That would mean either taxes on ordinary working people would have to go up to compensate for those lack of revenues, or Reform would have to cut public services, including the NHS. 'So, this is a tax cut by Nigel Farage and the Reform Party for foreign-born billionaires. Labour's priority is easing the pressure on ordinary working families and investing in our public services, including the NHS.'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Farage says non-dom policy ‘very attractive' despite tax expert cost warning
Nigel Farage has insisted Reform UK's proposed change to non-dom tax rules was 'very attractive' despite an expert warning the policy could cost the UK £34 billion. The party leader said he was 'not clever enough' to answer questions about the suggested hit to Britain's economy but dismissed criticism as 'off-the-wall nonsense' as he held a press conference on Monday. Mr Farage also batted away suggestions that his plan for a so-called Britannia Card was a 'profoundly left-wing concept' as he was asked whether the announcement was a bid to win votes from low-income workers. Reform has said it would reinstate non-dom status for wealthy individuals in exchange for a £250,000 one-off fee which would be given to Britain's poorest workers. Under the 'Britannia Card', non-doms would be offered a 10-year renewable residence permit and a return to the controversial arrangement whereby overseas income can be shielded from UK tax. They would also avoid inheritance tax, with the one-off payment then being distributed to Britain's bottom 10% of earners. Announcing the policy in central London on Monday, Mr Farage said: 'Many talented people are leaving, and we want as a party as many entrepreneurs, as many risk-takers, as many job creators, as many people paying lots of tax, as many people investing huge sums of money – we want as many of them as possible to be in our country.' Reform chairman Zia Yusuf added: 'The reality is that even the term non-dom has become, you know, these people have been made to feel persona non grata… there's a narrative that has been created that these people contribute nothing. 'So we have to set right that, too.' It comes as Dan Neidle, founder of Tax Policy Associates, claimed the policy would cost the UK £34 billion, warning that some highly skilled and highly paid professionals would not be able to afford the £250,000. The Office for Budget Responsibility has assessed that recent Labour and Conservative reforms to the non-dom status raise a net £33.9 billion from 2026/27 to 2029/30. Reform UK's Britannia card will bring thousands of wealthy job creators back to the UK and directly benefit working people. ✅ — Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) June 23, 2025 This sum is generated from a small number of very wealthy people who Mr Neidle said would opt to buy a Britannia Card and pay no tax, meaning the revenue would be lost. Because the £250,000 one-off payment would be redistributed, none of the money raised would reduce the impact on the public finances, he said. The Labour Government abolished the non-dom tax status in April, which is where UK residents whose permanent home or domicile for tax purposes is outside Britain. Mr Farage was asked about the analysis on Monday and was also pressed on whether he had an overall costing for the policy. 'Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. I'm not clever enough to answer any of that,' he said. 'That just sounds completely off-the-wall nonsense. I'm really sorry, but I think what we've got here is a very attractive offer. 'People are fleeing this country in droves. Our economy is in trouble. There are fears of wealth taxes coming in. All the mood music is bad.' Watch me speak LIVE as Reform UK announces the Britannia Card. 🇬🇧 — Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) June 23, 2025 The party leader said he believed 'tens of thousands of people' would come to the UK 'on this ticket' if Reform is successful. 'Even if after lots have come, we're going to get a trickle, not a flood, provided they're still paying their average £120,000-a-year income tax, provided they're still investing the billions that they do in business, in job creation, in risk – I tell you what, we'll be in a much better place than we are right now,' he said. Asked if he was attempting to give low-income workers free money to win over their votes, the Reform UK leader told reporters: 'Nice try, but the idea that I'm somehow putting forward a profoundly left-wing concept today could not be further from the truth. 'We're saying we want people who make loads of money to come in to Britain in huge numbers and pay lots and lots of tax and buy lots of houses and spend lots of money.' Rachel Reeves said Reform's announcement amounted to 'a tax cut for foreign billionaires'. Speaking during a visit to the West Midlands, the Chancellor said: 'That would mean either taxes on ordinary working people would have to go up to compensate for those lack of revenues, or Reform would have to cut public services, including the NHS. 'So, this is a tax cut by Nigel Farage and the Reform Party for foreign-born billionaires. Labour's priority is easing the pressure on ordinary working families and investing in our public services, including the NHS.'
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Nigel Farage's plan to restore non-dom tax breaks in exchange for £250k given to UK poorest 'could cost taxpayer £34billion'
Nigel Farage 's plan to restore tax breaks for wealthy foreigners in exchange for an annual fee could cost £34billion over five years, experts warned today. The Reform leader unveiled the Britannia card today, which would allow non-doms to live in Britain but pay no tax on their foreign income and property if he wins power. They would instead have to pay a one-off £250,000 'Entry Contribution' that Reform says would be passed on to the UK's lowest-paid workers. Mr Farage was forced to deny he was lurching to the left to woo Labour voters in the north and Midlands to Reform as he unveiled the scheme. He said he was no 'Robin Hood stealing from the rich' and said he hoped 'tens of thousands of people will come to the United Kingdom on this ticket'. Tax Policy Associates' Dan Neidle warned today that the scheme would 'provide a very large and expensive tax windfall to a small number of very wealthy people who are already here'. 'Office for Budget Responsibility data shows that this would amount to £34bn of lost Government revenue over five years,' he said. 'That would have to be funded by either tax increases or spending cuts.' He also suggested it would discourage highly skilled professionals from coming to the UK because they would not be able to pay the fee. Reform may struggle to convince people that the fee would last a lifetime, given the recent upheaval to the non-dom system, he added. At a press conference, flanked by Reform's Doge boss Zia Yusuf, Mr Farage was asked if he was attempting to give low-income workers free money to win over their votes. 'Nice try, but the idea that I'm somehow putting forward a profoundly left-wing concept today could not be further from the truth,' he said. 'We're saying we want people who make loads of money to come in to Britain in huge numbers and pay lots and lots of tax and buy lots of houses and spend lots of money.' Reform is choosing to help those who work and have been 'hammered', he added. Asked whether he had an overall costing for the policy, given Mr Neidle's analysis, he replied: 'Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. I'm not clever enough to answer any of that. 'That just sounds completely off the wall nonsense. I'm really sorry, but I think what we've got here is a very attractive offer. 'People are fleeing this country in droves. Our economy is in trouble. There are fears of wealth taxes coming in. All the mood music is bad.' The scheme is designed to make the UK a more attractive place to wealthy individuals, as it would reinstate the non-dom regime which Labour abolished in April. Non-domiciled status allows people who live in the UK, but who have a permanent home elsewhere, to only pay tax on the money they earn in the UK. It can be used to shield any overseas income and profits from UK taxes, unless they are transferred into the country. Chancellor Rachel Reeves is reportedly seeking to soften the changes, however, after fears that it is leading to an exodus of wealth creators. It comes after three of Britain's richest men – including a top investment banker -became the latest to join an exodus of the super-rich amid a government crackdown on wealthy non-doms. In April, Ian and Richard Livingstone, brothers who own a £9bn property empire in the UK and abroad, an online casino and plush Monte Carlo hotel, were revealed as having quit the UK for Monaco, according to corporate documents. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs' top banker, Richard Gnodde, worth over £130m, is understood to have ditched London for Milan.
