The leader of Reform UK in Scotland has acknowledged recent challenges faced by the party following a tumultuous two weeks, as he seeks to redirect the election discourse toward immigration issues.
In a candid admission, Lord Malcolm Offord highlighted difficulties encountered since the party’s manifesto launch and the introduction of its constituency candidates a fortnight ago, resulting in the resignation of four candidates and the suspension of another.
Addressing supporters in Glasgow’s East End, Lord Offord, who previously served as a Tory minister, unveiled a new advertising campaign. The campaign aims to prevent Glasgow from becoming the UK’s hub for illegal migrants and cautions that “Scotland is at breaking point.”
He criticized what he perceives as the “Holyrood bubble” for overlooking the immigration concerns of Scots, denouncing a system that allows newcomers to benefit without contribution.
Confronted with questions regarding the internal turmoil affecting the party’s Scottish campaign, including the loss of five candidates and criticism over amateurism, lack of democracy, and cronyism, Lord Offord stressed the party’s newness, noting that 80 percent of its candidates lack professional political backgrounds.
He remarked, “This experience has been a stark awakening for everyone. We’ve encountered a few obstacles, but our foundational processes remain robust.”
‘We have done strong assessments, objective assessments, and strong vetting processes – probably the strongest we’ve done.
‘We therefore present ourselves to the public as a group of people who are real people, who have done interesting things, who have got real jobs, who are stepping forward because they actually want to make a change. And so I think we are in pretty good shape.’
Lord Malcolm Offord says Reform’s Scottish candidates ‘want to make a change’
Lord Offord and Reform want to focus on immigration
North Ayrshire councillor Todd Ferguson, who joined in November, quit this week with concerns about ‘unprofessional conduct’ and ‘amateurism’ in the party, as well as infighting and cronyism, adding the party’s direction has ‘deteriorated markedly’ under Lord Offord.
But Lord Offord said: ‘He spat the dummy because he didn’t get the place he wanted on the list.
‘You can’t join Reform five months ago and say you are a committed Reformer and then be upset with where you end up on the list.’
It also emerged yesterday the party’s Scottish press officer had quit.
One recent Reform UK campaigner in Scotland said: ‘They are a bunch of jokers quite frankly, the way they are running the party. It is stitched up from the inside.
‘There’s a lot of anger all across the board. It is a Mickey Mouse operation that they are running.’
Scottish Tory deputy leader Rachael Hamilton said: ‘Reform’s campaign is in disarray. Their key policies fell apart within 24 hours of their manifesto launch and they have failed to oppose independence.’
During yesterday’s press conference, Lord Offord highlighted figures showing that Glasgow City Council is providing temporary accommodation for more than 9,337 homeless people, with 64 per cent of them having refugee status.
He also highlighted that the cost of hotels and B&Bs in Glasgow was £55million last year, which is equivalent to almost 15 per cent of all council tax revenue.
Lord Offord said Glasgow is ‘bursting at the seams’ and criticised John Swinney for indicating immigration is not an issue for Scots in this election campaign.
He said: ‘The media bubble and the political class would have you believe this issue has been whipped up by Reform rhetoric.
‘Bizarrely, they say that Reform has somehow convinced rational, intelligent, well-informed Scots that we have manufactured a non-existent problem out of thin air.
‘In other words, the Holyrood bubble believes that a significant chunk of the electorate is too stupid to form opinions of their own.’
Polling released this week put Reform in second place behind the SNP, with Labour in third.
When asked if he could do a deal with Labour after the election, Lord Offord said: ‘We couldn’t work with Labour because they don’t share our view on economic growth.’
