Inside Reform UK's 'youthquake' movement as voters under 30 flock to Farage

"Despite Labour's stranglehold, a recent opinion poll suggested Reform UK is making significant inroads, especially with boys and young men.

GB News decided to dig deeper into why so many young people have decided to join Reform UK and what is motivating them to support Farage.

Throughout two-days of events at the NEC, this broadcaster spoke to four Reform UK members under 30.

Christina Goody, 22 and Adam Creevy, 23, were both from Epping Forest in Essex.

The pair spoke openly about their reasons for supporting Reform UK and becoming members of the populist party.

Goody said: "It's about our future, at the end of the day. The housing crisis is a massive worry for my generation. We might not even be able to buy until we are in our thirties.

"Education is also a big worry. I have studied around the world - in Japan, Germany, the US and UK. I felt like the UK's education system was special but its been massively downgraded now because of what is being put into curriculum."

Goody, who revealed she previously supported the Tory Party, added: "I was settling for the Conservative Party but with Reform UK I feel like I align with literally everything they are saying."

Creevy also told GB News: "If you look around, you can actually see a lot of young people here. Politics isn't about left and right anymore. It's really a flawed view of the world. It's better to look at it as anti-establishment versus the establishment. Reform are taking on the uni-party of the Tories and Labour.

"I am so disenchanted by the mainstream parties that Reform is a breathe of fresh air. They make a lot of sense. We cannot have open borders, we have that with the Channel crossings. It's not practical."

However, the 23-year-old claimed Reform UK did not speak enough about the housing crisis.

"Reform is based on growing wealth," Creevy claimed. "I haven't heard much about their housing policy and if you're a young person who worries about that then that is a question you'd need to ask but I am more worried about the bigger problems: huge waves of legal immigration, the ECHR and taking control of our borders."

The civil engineer concluded: "There's a lot of people my age who have gone down the woke ideology rabbit hole. It's just inherently nihilistic and takes away pride in Britain. I want to be proud of the UK. I'm not proud of the UK under the Tories or Labour. Reform UK can restore that."

Stephanie Wood, 28, and her 30-year-old husband Richard Wood were also keen to share their reasons for supporting Reform UK.

Before getting snapped beside the populist party's done-up cab, the couple shared their thoughts on why Reform UK is making in roads.

Stephanie, who is hoping to set up a women's wing for Reform UK, told GB News: "When I saw the words family, community, country, I just thought, 'Oh my God, that's what we need'. I'm pregnant, we're starting our family, and I've thought about how we gain that community.

"When I was younger it was through Scouts and things lile that but politically we are now so divided. It would be nice to open the door to conversation and tolerance towards a variety of views and this is the way to do that."

She also claimed: "There was a penny drop moment when we were reading the manifesto where I realised I agree with all of this. Things about bringing up the tax thresholds, people can keep more of their money and that's great. I grew up on the benefits system - I saw it work and I saw it fail to work too. On the left, you can't have a conversation about it but this is a party where we can open the door to discuss these topics."

Richard added: "The left only seem to have one overarching message for young people; which is if you love Britain you are bad and wrong. There's a gaslighting campaign to convince people they don't have a culture. And the Tories aren't right-wing, they're a left-wing party."

However, the 30-year-old was keen to stress the need for Reform UK to lock far-right activists out of the movement.

He said: "It's incumbent upon us to keep them out. That's what Nigel said yesterday. We do not want bigots, we do not want racists, we do not want people who believe extremist things."

Addressing why Reform UK appeals to some young people, Richard added: "Reform are the only people calling young people to the adventure of their life, reminding them of our rich history and culture. We conquered the world, saved millions lives by exporting penicillin around the world, we ended slavery, we fought fascism. You have descended from those people. Take up your sword and make them proud."

Despite a number of young people voicing support for Reform UK, the populist party finished fourth among 18 to 24-year-olds on July 4.

However, there was a significant leap as Reform UK ended up in a distant second among 25 to 34-year-olds.

The median age of a Reform UK voter is 56, a decade older than a Labour voter but seven-years younger than a 2024 Tory.

Despite often receiving more support from older Britons, a recent JL Partners poll suggested there is a large gender divide between those in Generation Z.

Reform UK were joint with Labour among boys aged 16 and 17 on 35 per cent each.

However, the populist party will need to make up ground with young girls, with support slumping to just 12 per cent to put Reform UK behind both Labour and the Green Party.