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Reform UK Tones Down Culture War Rhetoric And Targets Tory Voters

Reform UK tones down culture war rhetoric and targets Tory voters

Reform UK, the rebranded Brexit party, plans to focus less on culture war issues and instead try to attract disenchanted Conservatives with more weighty policy offerings based on the cost of living and healthcare, its leader has said.

Richard Tice, a property developer and Brexit campaigner who took over from Nigel Farage as leader in March, promised to field at least 600 candidates in the next general election, saying half had already been chosen.

In the 2019 election the then Brexit party stood down in hundreds of Tory-held seats, but under Tice it will very clearly target what he now calls “the party of high taxes and high regulation”.

Speaking to the Guardian before the party’s conference on Sunday, Tice said it would not be unfair even to argue he has more in common with Keir Starmer than Boris Johnson. “I don’t think it is, actually. I’ve never met Keir, but I think you can tell we both care about people. Boris only cares about Boris.”

The Reform UK conference, while low in profile, carries potentially significant political resonance for several reasons, not least in shaping the future of a party that won the 2019 European elections but then slipped into near obscurity.

In this year’s council elections, the party won two seats. “Knocking on doors, the majority of people hadn’t heard of us,” Tice admitted, but polls now put Reform UK at up to 5%.

The conference will hear policy announcements in areas including healthcare, tax and the environment, plus one that Tice promised would have “a big, unexpected wow factor”.

He said this would mark the end of a period in which his party has often gained attention by focusing on the culture wars and associated issues, including opposition to lockdown and a semi-alliance with Laurence Fox, the outspoken actor turned London mayoral candidate.

“Yes, we get irritated by what we call the woke stuff, and I think it does irritate millions of people,” Tice said. “But what affects people’s daily lives are the policies I’ve talked about, and the election will be fought on those things. We are deadly serious about this.”

Also significant is Reform UK’s resolute opposition to Johnson’s Conservatives, to the extent of holding its conference in Manchester on the same day that the Tory conference opens in the same city. “That was my idea, to really wind them up, which I think it has successfully done,” Tice said. “We’re starting to get abused by Conservatives, which is always a good sign.”

Another notable element of the post-Farage Reform UK is that while critical of Johnsonism, it mimics his pick-and-mix approach to policies from the left and right. Thus, while Tice would propose significant cuts to income and business taxes, these would be aimed only at lower-paid people and smaller firms. Any revenue gap, which Tice argues would be temporary, would be plugged not by spending cuts but by increased borrowing.

“Everybody’s got their knickers in a twist about the national debt,” he said. “There’s no reason to be so worried about it.”

Similarly, while Tice is critical of the government’s net-zero plans, he does not overtly deny the climate science and would like to see the government offer 100% loans for people to fit domestic solar panels.

While Tice is careful to not dismiss Farage, to whom he still regularly speaks, it is clear this is a changed approach from a leader now best known for making videos about refugees landing in Dover. “Correct,” Tice said when asked if it was a new era for the party. “This is Reform UK under my leadership, and these policies are driven by my focus.”

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EFCC Hands Over 753 Recovered Housing Units to Ministry of Housing

The Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mr. Ola Olukoyede on Tuesday, May 20, 2025 handed over 753 units of houses recovered by the Commission at Plot 109 Cadastral Zone C09, Lokogoma District, Abuja to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.

The property, measuring 150,500 square metres and containing 753 Units of duplexes and other apartments, was recovered based on a final forfeiture order granted by Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court Abuja on Monday, December 2, 2024

While handing over the property, Olukoyede reiterated the commitment of the EFCC to accountable asset recovery and disposal modalities, pointing out that such gestures are meant to “demonstrate to Nigerians that whatever proceeds of crime that we have recovered in the course of our work, the application of that will be made transparent to Nigerians so that we will not allow looted assets to be looted again”.

He also pointed out that “It is important for us to emphasize to Nigerians that the fight against corruption can work and we can really make it work and one of the key factors that actually propels the impact of the fight is the need for us to ensure that those who have stolen our commonwealth are not allowed to enjoy the proceeds of crime. So one of the critical factors of our works is that we deprive them of the proceeds of crimes”

He applauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s stance on the fight against corruption, affirming that the handover of the property signaled the government’s seriousness to the fight against economic and financial crimes and other acts of corruption.

The handover took place in a brief ceremony at the Ministry’s headquarters in Mabushi, Abuja. Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, praised the EFCC for its sustained commitment to asset recovery and anti-corruption. He further stated that the handover was a “significant milestone in our collective efforts and determination to ensure that recovered assets are put to productive use in ways that directly benefits the Nigerian people”.

Dangiwa assured that the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development will conduct a joint familiarization tour of the estate, alongside the EFCC to properly access the structural state of the Estate.

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EFCC Arraigns Bankers, Three Others for Alleged Cybercrime in Lagos

The Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Awolowo on Tuesday, May 20, 2025, arraigned the duo of Kehinde Odeyemi and Matthew Adeniyi Damilola, who are both employees of Premium Trust Bank, before Justice Alexander Owoeye of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos.

They were arraigned alongside Samson Latshin Dakup, Bolaji Omotosho Yinka and Sunday Badeniyi Okunola on a seven-count charge bordering on conspiracy to steal.

The defendants allegedly conspired to manipulate the server and domain credentials of the bank in a bid to gain unauthorised access to its database and steal depositors’ funds.

The planned fraudulent activity was, however, averted by the Commission.

One of the counts reads: “That you, Kehinde Odeyemi, Samson Latshin Dakup, Bolaji Omotosho Yinka, Sunday Badeniyi Okunola, and Matthew Adeniyi Damilola, along with individuals identified as Humble (at large), Wasiu (at large), Isa Ismaila (at large) and another referred to as Victor Joshua Ilemona aka Oracle, (at large), conspired unlawfully between April and May 2025 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, to manipulate the access code (this included the bank’s server IP and domain credentials) of Premium Trust Bank Limited in a bid to gain unauthorised access to the entire database of Premium Trust Bank Limited for the purpose of committing an offense to wit: stealing from the bank’s funds, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 27 and 28 (1) (b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc) Act, 2015 (as amended, 2024), which is punishable under Section 28 (2) of the same Act.”

They pleaded not guilty to the charges when they were read to them.

In view of their pleas, prosecution counsel, Zeenat B. Atiku, prayed for a trial date and the defendants’ remand in a Correctional Centre.

Counsel to the first defendant, Adeleke Adepoju, urged the court to admit his client to bail in the most liberal terms. He stated that he didn’t have enough time to make a formal application.

Other counsel also sought to make oral applications for their clients.

Justice Owoeye, however, refused the applications and ordered the counsel to make formal bail applications before the court.

The judge ordered the first defendant to be remanded at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre.

The second, third, fourth and fifth defendants were ordered remanded at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre.

The matter was adjourned till June 30, 2025 for commencement of trial.

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Bank official testifies on suspicious deposits from Kogi LGAs linked to Yahaya Bello’s nephew

A senior official from Access Bank has detailed how billions of naira allegedly originating from various Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Kogi State were funneled into private accounts through suspicious transactions during the administration of former Governor Yahaya Bello.

Testifying before the Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday, Ofure Achille, former Head of Operations at Access Bank’s Lokoja branch, said the suspicious cash lodgments and withdrawals occurred over several years and were flagged and reported to the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).

Ms. Achille is the seventh prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of Ali Bello, a nephew to former Governor Bello and current Chief of Staff to Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo. He is facing 18 counts of money laundering involving the alleged diversion of N3 billion belonging to Kogi State.

Also standing trial are Abba Adaudu, Yakubu Siyaka Adabenege, Iyada Sadat, and Rashida Bello—accused of using shell companies and personal accounts to move massive sums.

The bank official testified that multiple transactions involving hundreds of millions of naira were inconsistent with the financial profiles of the account holders.

She cited examples including the E-Traders account operated by Jamilu Abdulahi, into which N30 million was deposited over two consecutive days in December 2021, followed by N40 million and another N30 million in early 2022.

“These transactions were flagged and reported to the NFIU as Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) under anti-money laundering laws,” she said.

Achille also revealed that accounts linked to co-defendants—including Fazab Business Enterprise and Hyzman Ary Construction Limited—received substantial funds from various Kogi LGAs. She noted that on 29 August 2017, Ary Construction received inflows totaling N171 million, with the first deposit of only N10,000 earlier that day.

The EFCC’s lead prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), led the witness through documentary evidence detailing patterns of deposits and withdrawals that allegedly reflect the laundering of public funds.

The trial continues before Justice Obiora Egwatu as prosecutors build their case against the defendants in what has become one of the most high-profile corruption trials in recent years.