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During recent the Reform party press conferences, a pair of notable heads can often be spotted in the front row: the pale hair of party policy chief Danny Kruger and the styled blond hair of James Orr.

As well as guiding the policy programme for what might become the UK’s future administration, the duo share another trait in common. Both are highly devout believer who found religion in later life, and hold strong opinions on social issues such as reproductive rights and the traditional family unit.

A Network of Faith

Kruger, an MP, who defected from the Conservatives, and Orr, a university scholar, also sit on the steering committee of a conservative policy group known as the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

Another member is Paul Marshall, the investment tycoon who owns GB News and the rightwing Spectator magazine. Marshall is a devout Christian.

“Religion, specifically evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been a key characteristic of US rightwing politics,” with its adherents forming the bedrock of Donald Trump’s support.

Transatlantic Links

Parallels do exist. Orr is sufficiently close to the US Vice-President that he has welcomed him at his family home. Orr is also involved in the National Conservatism movement, which has ties to the US religious-populism world.

However, direct comparisons soon fall down due to a simple matter of scale. While polling shows that close to a fourth of US adults are evangelicals, the figure for the UK is roughly one-tenth of that at the very most.

The UK Evangelical Vote

An additional important factor to take into account. While US evangelicals lean firmly to the political right, new polling by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance indicate the broader situation in Britain is quite different.

A poll of nearly 1,500 evangelicals places Labour in the lead with 26% support. Reform and the 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.

“Among evangelicals there can be a gap between personal views, especially on social issues, and how people cast their ballot,” said one advocacy head. “For example, someone might have a strong opinion on abortion, but they don’t see voting as a way to lead to change.”

Cross-Party Belief

Evangelism is present in parliament, including all-party faith-based meetings. But it is a phenomenon also of the political left, with figures like Kruger balanced out by the Lib Dem Tim Farron and the Labour Party Member of Parliament Rachael Maskell.

She has been very open about how faith informs her politics, especially concerning issues such as economic disadvantage.

“Ethical fairness was ‘a big part’ of the party's ethos,” she stated. “It’s part of our roots, how we think about inequality in society, making sure we have a just system.”

A Newer Strain

Nonetheless, there exists a different and newer side to religion in UK politics, one more closely modelled on US concepts of faith-based nationalism.

The activist Tommy Robinson has started to present himself as openly a Christian, though a lot of this is done as a counterpoint to Islam.

In a similar vein, Nick Tenconi, who leads the UK outpost of Turning Point, posts social media messaging about the country needing to “return to Christ” combined with anti-Muslim content.

In a dramatic display of this, a linked Christian nationalist group called King’s Army marched in formation through Soho, a location seemingly chosen as it is the centre of London’s LGBT community.

Limited Influence

All this remains, however, relatively marginal in UK politics. While critics sometimes depict certain figures as wealthy incubators of American-style religious politics, friends maintain they are simply devout believers who are firmly against any political exploitation of faith.

Kruger is not averse to sometimes unconventional rhetoric, for example in an address to condemn what he said was a younger generation indoctrinated by a blend of ideologies.

“In the UK you do have some Christian nationalists, but when it comes to politics it tends to be a sort of Christian nostalgia, linked to our historic identity,” said one commentator.

A parliamentarian of faith on the right observed that while the issue of assisted dying had united MPs with faith, any links beyond that felt restricted.

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