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At recent the Reform party press conferences, a pair of notable figures can often be seen in the forefront: the pale hair of party policy chief Danny Kruger and the swept-back blond mane of senior adviser James Orr.

As well as guiding the policy programme for what might become the UK’s next government, the pair share another trait in common. Each is a highly devout Christian who found religion in later life, and hold strong opinions on social issues such as abortion and the traditional family unit.

A Network of Faith

The MP Kruger, who defected from the Conservatives, and Orr, a university scholar, are members of the advisory board of a rightwing thinktank known as the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

A further participant is the financier Paul Marshall, the hedge fund millionaire who controls GB News and the rightwing Spectator magazine. He is also a practising Christian.

“Religion, specifically evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been one of the defining elements of US rightwing politics,” with its adherents forming the bedrock of a particular political support.

Transatlantic Links

Parallels do exist. Orr is personally connected to JD Vance that he has welcomed him at his family home. Orr is also active in the National Conservatism movement, which has ties to the US religious-populism world.

However, direct comparisons soon fall down due to a basic issue of scale. While surveys indicate that close to a quarter of US adults are evangelicals, the figure for the UK is roughly one-tenth of that at the very most.

A Different Landscape

An additional important factor to consider. While US evangelicals tilt strongly to the political right, new polling by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance indicate the wider picture in Britain is quite different.

Research of nearly 1,500 evangelicals places the Labour Party in the first place with 26% support. The Reform party and Liberal Democrats are tied on 20%, with the Conservatives on 18%.

Further polling reveal 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 opinions, especially on social issues, and how people vote,” explained a representative. “As an instance, someone might have a firm stance on abortion, but they do not view voting as likely to lead to change.”

Cross-Party Belief

Evangelism does exist in parliament, including cross-party prayer group meetings. But it is a reality present on the left, with figures like Kruger balanced out by Tim Farron and the Labour MP Rachael Maskell.

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

“Moral justice was ‘a big part’ of the party's ethos,” she stated. “It’s part of our roots, how we think about disparity 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 influenced by American ideas of religious nationalism.

Tommy Robinson has started to portray himself as openly a Christian, although much of this is done as a counterpoint to Islam.

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

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

Limited Influence

All this remains, however, fairly niche in UK politics. While commentators sometimes portray certain figures as financial backers of US-style evangelism, friends insist they are little more than observant believers who are strongly opposed to any politicisation of faith.

Kruger is not averse to occasional off-piste rhetoric, for example using a speech to condemn what he said was a younger generation indoctrinated by a blend of ideologies.

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

One Christian MP on the right observed that while the issue of assisted dying had helped bring together MPs with faith, any connections beyond that felt limited.

“I certainly don’t get the sense of much of an evangelical lobby,” they commented. “In my view, my faith is more a foundation for what I already believe. And here, religion is not really a vote winner.”