We cannot deny Reform’s appeal – but these fake patriots do not stand for British values
3 min read
Nigel Farage and Reform UK have managed to tap into public discontent. But be in no doubt: their dress-up patriotism and easy answers would be devastating for our country.
We must not deny Reform UK’s appeal. After 14 years of failure, many voters are looking to Nigel Farage’s party.
It has shown a clear ability to tap into public discontent where other parties have struggled. Labour must call out Reform’s fraudulent messaging and mobilise voters against these fake patriots.
Reform would be devastating for Britain and would wreak untold damage on our country.
I was raised in a household steeped in service — where duty, decency, and discipline were a way of life. My grandfather hunted Nazi U-boats, my father spent his career in the police force and my mother devoted her life to caring for the vulnerable.
Serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, and later working for the National Crime Agency and in counter-terrorism, I know first hand what it takes to protect the rule of law and the safety of our citizens.
British values are justice, respect, equality, liberty and the rule of law. They have been tested in the toughest of environments – from Helmand to Westminster. Our armed forces exemplify the best of these values: discipline, professionalism and the unwavering will to protect those who cannot protect themselves. That commitment to duty is something I will carry with me my whole life — and something our country must never take for granted.
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As Farage has shown, strength without discipline is chaos, and leadership without decency is weakness. We need leaders who make the hard decisions for the right reasons, instead of what is easy. This includes showing resolve where others would waver and knowing when to lead with diplomacy, compassion, and integrity. As Keir Starmer does.
Our British values have been hijacked and hollowed out by Reform. When fascism threatened our way of life in the 1930s, we stood firm. When economic recklessness emerged in the 1980s, we chose responsibility. Today, we must again reject division and ideological chaos and prove to voters the value of competent, grounded leadership.
Sadly, British values have been degraded in our Parliament. Farage praises Russia’s Vladimir Putin, wrapping himself in the flag and calling it patriotism. But patriotism isn’t about playing dress-up. It’s about who you stand with — and who you stand up to. Farage sides with strongmen abroad and opportunists at home. That’s not patriotism. That’s betrayal.
Reform’s confusion over Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky’s decision to delay elections during wartime — as Winston Churchill did in the 1940s — exposed a deep ignorance of our history and basic democratic values.
In government, Labour is rebuilding what matters — not with slogans, but with substance. Nowhere is that clearer than in the NHS. We are cutting through the bloated bureaucracy, demanding accountability and investing where it counts.
Farage would abandon the NHS — pushing for an American-style insurance system, betraying a national institution many of us have risked our lives to protect.
Now is not the time for ideology or inertia. Britain needs leaders who’ve served, who understand discipline and who know the value of action grounded in duty.
Labour has never backed down from a challenge, and that won’t change now we’re in government.
Mike Tapp is the Labour MP for Dover and Deal.
