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During recent Reform UK press conferences, a pair of notable figures can often be seen in the forefront: the pale hair of 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 duo have something else in common. Each is a deeply committed Christian who found religion in later life, and possess trenchant views on matters of society such as reproductive rights and the traditional family unit.

A Network of Faith

The MP Kruger, who defected from the Conservatives, and Orr, a Cambridge academic, are members of the steering committee of a conservative policy group called the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

Another member is the financier Paul Marshall, the investment tycoon who controls 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 American conservative politics,” with its adherents forming the bedrock of a particular political support.

Transatlantic Links

Parallels do exist. Orr is sufficiently close to JD Vance that he has hosted him at his family home. Orr is also active in the National Conservatism movement, which has connections to the US religious-populism world.

But any closer parallels soon fall down due to a basic issue of scale. While surveys indicate that close to a fourth of US adults are evangelical Christians, the figure for the UK is roughly one-tenth of that at the very most.

The UK Evangelical Vote

There is another important factor to consider. While US evangelicals tilt strongly to the right, recent surveys by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance indicate the broader situation in Britain is markedly distinct.

A poll of nearly 1,500 evangelicals shows the Labour Party in the first place with 26% support. Reform and the Liberal Democrats are tied on 20%, with the Conservatives on 18%.

Further polling demonstrate backing from evangelicals for more generous welfare payments, but also concerted alarm about plans to permit assisted dying.

“Sometimes with evangelicals there can be a dissonance between personal views, especially on social issues, and how people vote,” explained a representative. “For example, someone might have a strong opinion on abortion, but they don’t see voting as likely to lead to change.”

Faith Across the Aisle

Evangelical belief 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 Tim Farron and the Labour MP Rachael Maskell.

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

“Moral justice was ‘a big part’ of Labour politics,” she stated. “It stems from our roots, how we think about disparity in society, ensuring 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 American ideas of faith-based nationalism.

The activist Tommy Robinson has started to present himself as openly a Christian, although much of this is done as a contrast to Islam.

In a similar vein, Nick Tenconi, who leads the UK branch of the Turning Point group, includes social media messaging about the country needing to “return to Christ” alongside anti-Islam content.

One striking manifestation of this, a Turning Point-allied nationalist Christian group called King’s Army paraded through Soho, a location seemingly chosen as it is the centre of London’s LGBT community.

A Niche Phenomenon

All this remains, however, fairly niche in UK politics. While critics sometimes depict certain figures as financial backers of US-style evangelism, friends maintain they are simply devout believers who are strongly opposed to any politicisation of faith.

Kruger is not averse to sometimes unconventional rhetoric, for example using a speech to censure what he said was a younger generation influenced by a blend of ideologies.

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

A parliamentarian of faith on the right noted that while the issue of assisted dying had united MPs with faith, any connections beyond that felt limited.

“I do not get the sense of much of an evangelical lobby,” they said. “For me, my faith is more a foundation for what I already believe. And here, religion is not particularly a vote winner.”