🔗 Share this article Reform UK Leader Addresses Movement's Largest Scottish Rally Following Scrutiny and Defection The Reform UK figurehead spoke to the biggest Reform UK public meeting so far in Scotland, but declined to speak with the press corps following the event. In his place, newly defected peer the former Conservative donor took on the task of field questions on claims of discriminatory behaviour and antisemitism linked to Farage. Welcoming a New Recruit The leader presented the ex-Tory lord and millionaire donor during a packed event of roughly seven hundred attendees in a hotel venue near Falkirk. Offord, who served as a junior minister for Scotland under the last government and was until recently the Scottish Tory party's chief financial officer, stated his plan to relinquish his seat in the Lords in order to stand for Reform UK in the upcoming Scottish parliament vote. The leader stated he was “extremely pleased” to greet Offord to the party. He described the switch as “a courageous and significant move”. Dodging the Press The Reform leader addressed the rally following a difficult period which included him delivering a fierce criticism of the broadcaster for questioning him about an investigation into alleged racist and remarks as a youth. But, the leader avoided the expected press huddle post-rally. When asked why his new party’s leader was not available to answer mounting allegations about his past behaviour, the new recruit responded: “That is a question for him to answer.” Challenged about whether he believed an apology was necessary for the comments he is said to have made towards Jewish pupils, he stated: “I think that’s something he’ll need to consider with his own advisers.” Insisting on Fitness The peer maintained that the leader is “morally fit” to be prime minister and rejected claims of dog-whistle politics. While addressing supporters, the leader had reiterated on previous comments about the number of Glasgow schoolchildren who speak English as a second language by posing the question to the crowd: “Who voted for the wholesale change of the population of Glasgow?” Although the first minister, John Swinney condemned the initial comments as “racist”, and Keir Starmer called them “harmful and polarising”, the defector argued that Farage was “drawing attention to a real concern” that people are talking about on the doorstep”. Growing Confidence The event, attended by an lively and passionate audience of largely male, white and middle-aged supporters who bought tickets for the event, highlights the party’s growing confidence before next May’s elections. While the SNP continues to lead in the polls, Reform UK has made substantial progress recently, achieving a quarter of the vote in its first Holyrood byelection test. After the collapse in support for Scottish Labour, Reform has regularly pushed it into third place in recent months, polling up to 22%. Announcing that party membership north of the border had increased fourfold in the past year to a running total of 12,000, a senior party official said he believed it could gain up to 20 MSPs in May, putting the party in “a powerful situation” at Holyrood. Fighting Talk A Reform councillor, a local representative for the party, prompted a roar of approval as he referred to the leader as “Britain’s next prime minister”. He instructed the crowd to “prepare for a fight” as we “challenge the ruling class”, cautioning that “the coming campaign will be difficult”. Although the party has yet to produce any Scotland-specific policies, representatives vowed the party would “confront climate activists and those profiting from green policies”. Farage himself underlined his delight at Reform's rise as a significant player in Scottish politics in the last year, confessing to supporters that in previous years he had been warned he “wouldn’t get 20 people in a room”. Protests Nearby As the event was taking place, not far away in Falkirk town centre, anti-immigration and anti-racist protesters assembled for what have become regular weekly confrontations outside a local hotel used to accommodate asylum seekers. The organisers of the demonstrations stated they were motivated by a serious local crime. In an interview, First Minister John Swinney warned that the tactic of the far-right is to apportion the blame … to new arrivals and I think that is the root of the poison”. He also made a clear distinction between those who hold far-right views and people with “valid concerns” about pressure on local services or community safety.