Almost half of Brits worry Farage-Trump ties undermine UK national interests
20 January, 2025
Left Foot Forward News
Voters want closer ties with EU and are worried about Farage’s ‘close’ relationship with Trump, a new Savanta poll has found
Voters want closer ties with EU and are worried about Farage’s ‘close’ relationship with Trump, a new Savanta poll has found
A new Savanta poll, commissioned by the Liberal Democrats, has found that nearly half of voters (47%) are concerned that Nigel Farage’s close ties with Mr Trump risk undermining the UK’s national interests.
The poll of 2205 people also found that 56% are worried about the impact of a Trump presidency on the UK’s security and economy.
When it came to voting intention, just over 40% of Conservative voters said Farage’s close ties to Trump were concerning, while the figure rose to 61% among Labour voters, 62% among Lib Dems and 56% among Green voters.
Regarding the impact of Trump’s presidency on the UK’s security and economy, 57% of Conservative voters in the last election expressed concern, compared to 67% of Labour voters and 71% of Liberal Democrats.
Over half of voters (52%) said that given Trump’s election, they believe the UK should build closer economic and security ties with Europe.
A recent poll conducted by Savanta on behalf of Left Foot Forward found that 46% of voters want closer ties to the EU, compared to 16% who want looser ties.
That figure was higher among Labour voters at last year’s general election, 64% of whom said the UK should build closer “economic and security ties with Europe”, given Trump’s return to the White House today.
Calum Miller, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs Spokesperson, said: “We all know what Donald Trump’s leadership looked like last time: inconstant, unreliable, occasionally menacing.
“It’s no wonder voters are worried about how he’ll impact our national security – not to mention their pockets.
“A clear majority of the people who put Labour in power want action to support our economy and security in the wake of Trump, and that means forging closer ties with Europe.
“Keir Starmer must listen to them and accelerate talks with Europe. The Liberal Democrats will continue to push urgently for a stronger UK-EU relationship, including a brand-new Customs Union deal to cut red tape and boost British businesses.”
Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward
Nigel Farage once more reiterates plans to get people to start paying for the NHS
Yesterday
Left Foot Forward
“Nigel Farage has made it clear he wants to decimate the health service and see people charged thousands for operations."
“Nigel Farage has made it clear he wants to decimate the health service and see people charged thousands for operations."
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, who likes to portray himself as a man of the people, has once more reiterated his plans to change the way the NHS is funded, should he ever win power.
Farage, who was previously filmed calling for a move away from a state-funded NHS, once again repeated his intention to do away with the NHS’s ‘free at the point of use’ system, this week suggesting that some sort of means-testing for the health service was needed.
Speaking to the Times at a Republican event in Washington, Farage said: “We’ve got to identify a system of funding for healthcare that is more effective than the one we have currently got, and at the same time carries those who can’t afford to pay.”
In response, a Labour spokesperson told HuffPost UK: “Nigel Farage has made it clear he wants to decimate the health service and see people charged thousands for operations.
“That might work for him and his multi-millionaire deputy, but it would see working people unable to afford vital treatments and end the proud history of the NHS offering care free at the point of use.
“This Labour government is delivering on our plan for change to cut waiting lists and get the NHS back on its feet. We mustn’t let a Tory-Reform coalition of chaos put that at risk.”
Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward
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