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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Emma Graham-Harrison

Is UK bucking Europe’s trend of moving to the right?

Nigel Farage
Nigel Farage’s Reform party got 14% share of UK votes, but due to the first past the post system won only five parliamentary seats. Photograph: Oli Scarff/AFP/Getty Images

Labour’s landslide victory was hailed as a beacon of hope for progressives worldwide after a surge in support for far-right parties in Europe, and with Donald Trump currently slight favourite to become the US president in January.

But Britain’s bulwark against the populist, extremist tide sweeping through European capitals may be as much practical as ideological. Nigel Farage’s rightwing Reform party got a 14% share of votes nationwide, not far behind the 16% claimed by Germany’s far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) in recent elections for the EU parliament.

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