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During recent Reform UK press conferences, a pair of notable figures can often be spotted in the front row: the pale hair of party policy chief Danny Kruger and the swept-back blond mane of senior adviser James Orr.

Beyond shaping the policy programme for what might become the UK’s future administration, the pair have something else in common. Both are deeply committed believer who came to religion in later life, and possess trenchant views on matters of society such as abortion and the traditional family unit.

A Network of Faith

The MP Kruger, who switched allegiance from the Conservatives, and Orr, a university scholar, are members of the steering committee of a conservative policy group called the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

Another member is Paul Marshall, the hedge fund millionaire who owns GB News and the rightwing Spectator magazine. He is also a practising Christian.

“Faith, particularly evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been a key characteristic of US rightwing politics,” with its adherents providing the core of a particular political support.

Cross-Over Connections

Parallels do exist. Orr is sufficiently close to the US Vice-President that he has hosted him at his private residence. Orr is also active in the NatCon movement, which has connections to the American faith-based populist world.

But any closer comparisons quickly break down due to a simple matter of scale. While polling shows that close to a quarter of US adults are evangelicals, the figure for the UK is about a tenth of that at most.

A Different Landscape

There is another crucial element to take into account. While US evangelicals lean firmly to the political right, new polling by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance indicate the wider picture here is markedly distinct.

Research of nearly 1,500 evangelicals places Labour in the lead with over a quarter backing. The Reform party and Liberal Democrats are level on 20%, with the Conservatives on 18%.

Other questions demonstrate backing from evangelicals for more generous welfare payments, but also significant concern about plans to permit assisted dying.

“Sometimes with evangelicals there can be a gap between personal views, particularly regarding social issues, and how people vote,” said one advocacy head. “As an instance, someone might have a strong opinion on abortion, but they do not view voting as likely to lead to change.”

Faith Across the Aisle

Evangelism is present in parliament, including cross-party prayer group meetings. But it is a phenomenon also of the left, with figures like Kruger countered by the Lib Dem Tim Farron and the Labour Party Member of Parliament Rachael Maskell.

Maskell is very open about how faith shapes her politics, notably on issues such as economic disadvantage.

“Moral justice was ‘a big part’ of Labour politics,” she stated. “It stems from our foundations, how we think about disparity in society, ensuring we have a just system.”

Emerging Currents

There is, however a distinct and more recent side to religion in UK politics, one influenced by American ideas of faith-based nationalism.

Tommy Robinson has started to portray himself as explicitly Christian, although much of this is done as a contrast to Islam.

Similarly, Nick Tenconi, who leads the UK branch of Turning Point, posts social media messaging about the country needing to “return to Christ” alongside anti-Muslim content.

In a dramatic display of this, a linked Christian nationalist group named King’s Army paraded through Soho, a location apparently selected as it is the centre of London’s LGBT community.

A Niche Phenomenon

All this remains, however, fairly niche in UK politics. While commentators sometimes depict certain figures as financial backers of American-style religious politics, friends maintain they are simply observant believers who are firmly against any politicisation of faith.

Kruger is not shy of sometimes unconventional language, for example using a speech to censure what he said was a younger generation indoctrinated by a mix of ideologies.

“In the UK you do have a few Christian nationalists, but when it comes to politics it more often be a sort of Christian nostalgia, linked to our historical character,” said one commentator.

A parliamentarian of faith with conservative views observed that while the issue of assisted dying had united MPs with faith, any connections beyond that felt restricted.

“I do not get the sense of much of an organized faith-based lobby,” they said. “In my view, my faith is more a foundation for what I personally hold. And here, religion is not really a vote winner.”