Nigel Farage has acknowledged Reform UK will not form a government after 4 July – but said the general election campaign is the “first big push” towards the next contest.

Launching his party’s offer to the electorate – which he is calling a “contract” rather than a manifesto – Mr Farage said his campaign has “momentum” around the country, including the support of a “rapidly increasing” number of 18 to 24-year-olds.

Speaking in Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales, he said there had been a “breakdown of trust” in politics and hoped Reform would “establish a bridgehead in parliament” to “become a real opposition” to a Labour government.

“We are not pretending that we are going to win this General Election, we are a very, very new political party,” he said.

“This is step one. Our real ambition is the 2029 general election. But this is our first big push.”

Mr Farage earlier confirmed his ambitions to become prime minister at the next general election, which could be in 2029.

Reform’s policy document runs to 25 pages – compared with 133 published by Labour – with the first two of the party’s five core pledges on immigration.

Reform are promising to freeze “all non-essential immigration” and to “stop the boats” in their first 100 days in power.

The other three core pledges ask voters to “imagine no NHS waiting lists”, to “imagine good wages for a hard day’s work” and also “imagine affordable, stable energy bills”.

Reform are also promising a raft of tax cuts, including raising the minimum threshold of income tax to £20,000 a year, abolishing stamp duty, and abolishing inheritance tax for all estates under £2m.

The party plans to fund its policies by abandoning net zero targets, the introduction of an immigration tax, and through savings on “wasteful government spending”.

Related posts:

Cameron and Sunak set to be quizzed by MPs over Greensill lobbying controversy Labour in touching distance of Welsh Parliament majority, new poll says World ‘must never be caught unawares’ by another pandemic – PM Conservative MP Crispin Blunt to stand down at next election Starmer accuses Tories of ‘mudslinging’ over lockdown beers footage Rebel Tories say Boris Johnson should consider position despite confidence vote victory Speaker calls for Commons recess to be cut short following pause to mourn Queen Nearly 2,000 offenders made to wear alcohol-detecting tags this Christmas Just 800 of estimated 4,000 EU laws to be scrapped by year’s end, MPs told Legal migration could prove a bigger headache than asylum seekers for Sunak Statue unveiled in honour of murdered MP Lord Cameron criticises Labour for taking in Tory MP