Robert Jenrick boasts that Reform is for the workers, but it's a class war trap and Labour shouldn't fall for it | Polly Toynbee

"Class politics is back, as if it ever went away. Robert Jenrick declares that Tories are toffs and the divide in British politics has become Reform's workers party versus the Tory posh party. He says the Tories are so out of touch they are no longer the party of working people, of provincial Britain, of the towns and cities. He's not wrong, says Prof Tim Bale, political analyst: Reform can claim to be a disproportionately working-class party."

"It's a forever political mystery that low-paid/working-class voters will opt for the very wealthy with contrary financial interests. Bale points out that the Tories' grip on power always relied on backing from a third of working-class voters. Populist demagogues of the Jenrick/Reform stamp seduce with appeals to anti-elite emotions, only to betray supporters as cannon fodder once in power. As money flows to the hyper-rich in the US under Donald Trump, the trickery in Reform's tax-and-spend policies would similarly reward better-off people most."

The Conservative Party is increasingly characterized as posh and out of touch, losing its status as the party of working people, provincial Britain, towns and cities. Reform presents itself as disproportionately supported by working-class voters and exploits anti-elite emotions through populist theatrics, while policies would primarily reward wealthier groups. A private-school, Cambridge-educated figure illustrates class incongruities within rightwing politics, especially given Reform's billionaire founders. Populist leaders seduce low-paid voters but often deliver gains for the affluent. Class remains politically decisive, with education becoming an even stronger proxy and predictor of voting behavior.

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