What’s truly amazing about this, is that it’s not even the first time Zia Yusuf has accidentally aimed some friendly fire towards his colleagues this week. Fresh from criticising ‘dishonourable members‘ of Parliament, the Reform supremo has found another way to insult his party’s MPs.
While promoting Reform’s ‘Accelerator Programme’ – which aims to give young people from less prestigious backgrounds the chance to work in frontline politics – Yusuf lashed out at the Westminster class, stating that it’s more about ‘who you know’ rather than what you know.
Taking things a step further, Reform’s Home Secretary (not the shadow one, despite his self-identification) took a swipe at the ‘rotten political class’, stating that entry to Parliament was largely based on ‘what school you went to’. It’s a good attack line… but it also applies to most Reform MPs.
Six of their eight elected representatives went to private schools. Danny Kruger went to Eton. Nigel Farage attended Dulwich College. Robert Jenrick, Suella Braverman, Sarah Pochin, and Richard Tice also attended local fee-paying institutions. Only Lee Anderson and Andrew Rosindell buck the trend.
In fact, there’s a credible argument that Reform’s front bench is the perfect embodiment of that ‘rotten class’ Zia is referring to. It’s also worth acknowledging what a significant self-own this is, given that Mr. Yusuf also studied at a private school, receiving a partial scholarship at Hampton College.
“For too long Westminster has run on who you know and what school you went to. That’s how Britain got the rotten political class it has. Reform is doing it differently. Our Accelerator Programme is for brilliant, ambitious young people who want to build our future. Come and join us!” | Zia Yusuf
On Tuesday, Zia Yusuf launched a separate tirade against politicians with ‘Right Honourable’ in their title, prompting many to point out he was having a go at a few of his Reform colleagues. His recent social media activity has come under scrutiny – and resulted in a senior Reform member being suspended.
Most embarrassingly for Yusuf, it was pointed out to him that the late Ann Widdecombe also held the Rt Hon title. Indeed, his disdain for elected MPs has since become a major talking point, and who knows, perhaps his tone may change – if he were to ever be selected as a Reform candidate.
