Political gathering commences - with Farage back from Trump discussion

UKIP Conference 2022: A Gathering of Political Discontent

Lucy Connolly, a former race hate inmate turned self-styled freedom fighter, is generating buzz in newsrooms as the UK Independence Party (UKIP) prepares for its 2022 conference. The event, expected to attract 12,000 people across two days, will resemble the annual events of Westminster's established parties in organisational terms.

The conference agenda includes a range of topics such as migration, free speech, council waste, crime, net zero, high street regeneration, tourism, and car finance. Notable attendees include former Tory cabinet ministers Michael Gove and Jacob Rees-Mogg, as well as representatives from think tanks, pollsters, mainstream institutes, multinational organisations like Japan Tobacco and TikTok, and industry groups such as the National Farmers Union and British Association for Shooting and Conservation.

The appeal of Nigel Farage remains the same: riding waves of public disenchantment and trying to turn anger into action. In 2013, the UKIP conference saw its fair share of controversy, with MEP Godfrey Bloom involved in a row over sexist remarks towards women during a panel event titled "women in politics". This time around, UKIP aims to project a message that they are a serious party with proposals that could work in government.

However, big question marks still hang over the feasibility and affordability of much of what Reform, the party's new name, puts forward in terms of policy. Reform's policies seem to be less about a set ideology and more about what is popular with the millions of Britons who feel abandoned by the mainstream political system.

The identity of the special guest who will speak before Nigel Farage at the conference is being kept secret by Reform sources. Speculation about surprise appearances at the UKIP conference includes potential Tory defectors and interventions from across the Atlantic. Nigel Farage himself will speak on Friday afternoon after returning from Washington, where he gave evidence to Congress about freedom of speech and met with Donald Trump.

Gawain Towler, a long-time aide to Nigel Farage, described the past UKIP conferences as "rallies of the faithful" and the current one as a "conference of a government in waiting". The search results do not provide information about the "special guest". As the conference approaches, anticipation grows for what promises to be an eventful gathering of political discontent.