Nigel Farage Dubbed 'Snake Oil Salesman' Over Reform UK's New Welfare Promises
Nigel Farage has been dubbed a “snake oil salesman” by Angela Rayner as he reportedly wants to fully reinstate the winter fuel payments and scrap the two-child benefit cap.
According to The Telegraph, the right-wing Reform UK leader will try to win over left-leaning voters in the upcoming days by attacking Labour’s deeply unpopular crackdown on the welfare state.
The government took the winter fuel allowance of up to £300 away from 10 million pensioners in its Budget last year.
Labour also kept the Tory policy of refusing to increase the amount of benefits families receive once they have more than two children.
The party chairman Zia Yusuf claimed Reform would pay to reverse these policies by cutting the foreign aid budget, closing asylum hotels and ending net zero subsidies.
Responding to these promises – expected to be unveiled in a press conference next week – one broadcaster even went so far as to describe Farage as a new working class champion because of the policies.
On his show Sky News’ Sunday with Trevor Phillips, the presenter said: “In Downing Street this morning, they’re waking up to a challenge from the left.
“The working class has found a new champion, who wants more welfare spending, more nationalisation, and more trade union power.
“His name? Nigel Farage. And he’s seven points ahead in the polls.”
However, deputy prime minister Rayner was quick to call Farage out on his promises.
She told the BBC: “To give winter fuel payments to people who have millions in the bank is probably not a good idea.”
“Nigel Farage says a lot of things,” she continued. “But the reality on my employment rights bill [...] Nigel Farage and his small band of MPs didn’t vote for it.
“So when it comes to actually walking the walk, their record is they didn’t vote for measures that didn’t help working people in this country.”
On LBC, Rayner also said: “He can say he’s going to give jam tomorrow, but with all things Nigel Farage – snake oil salesman – it’s not real.
“He’s not said where the money is coming from and therefore I wouldn’t believe a word he says on it.
“If there was any government that was going to do something on this and eradicate child poverty, it’s the Labour government and we’re determined to do that through our task force, and looking at child poverty in the round.”
'With all things Nigel Farage says, it's not real... he's not said where the money's coming from.'@AngelaRayner tells @BenKentish 'not to believe a word' the Reform leader says on child poverty. pic.twitter.com/9o5DfHpuxS
— LBC (@LBC) May 25, 2025
The Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch also attacked Farage’s claims this morning.
“Nigel Farage is someone who is going to say whatever he can to get into power,” she told Sky News.
“I am taking the hard road, I am not going to do that. We spent years chasing polls, telling people what they wanted to hear and not delivering.
“He is doing that now, making promises and then they’ll get into government and can’t deliver it.”
Phillips asked her: “Are you envisioning that Farage could get into power?”
“Well, I hope not, because it would be very bad for this country,” Badenoch said.