Religion and Politics: Is the Conservative Christian Wing on the Rise in UK Politics?

At recent Reform UK 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 styled blond hair of James Orr.

As well as guiding the policy programme for what could be the UK’s future administration, the pair have something else in common. Both are deeply committed believer who found religion in adulthood, and hold trenchant views on social issues such as abortion and the family.

A Network of Faith

Kruger, an MP, who switched allegiance from the Conservatives, and Orr, a university scholar, are members of the steering committee of a conservative policy group called the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

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

“Religion, specifically Protestant evangelism, has in recent decades been one of the defining elements of US rightwing politics,” with its adherents forming the bedrock of Donald Trump’s support.

Transatlantic Links

Parallels do exist. Orr is sufficiently close to JD Vance that he has hosted him at his family home. Orr is also active in the National Conservatism movement, which has connections to the US religious-populism world.

However, direct comparisons quickly break down due to a basic issue of scale. While polling shows that nearly a quarter of US adults are evangelicals, the figure for the UK is about a tenth of that at the very most.

The UK Evangelical Vote

There is another important factor to take into account. While US evangelicals lean firmly to the political right, new polling by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance suggests that the broader situation in Britain is quite different.

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

Further polling reveal backing from evangelicals for increased welfare payments, but also significant concern about plans to permit assisted suicide.

“Among evangelicals there can be a dissonance between personal views, particularly regarding social issues, and how people cast their ballot,” 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

Evangelical belief is present in parliament, including all-party prayer group meetings. But it is a phenomenon present on the political left, with figures like Kruger countered by the Lib Dem Tim Farron and the Labour MP Rachael Maskell.

She has been explicit about how her beliefs informs her politics, especially concerning issues such as economic disadvantage.

“Moral justice was ‘a big part’ of the party's ethos,” she stated. “It stems from our foundations, how we think about inequality in society, ensuring we have a just system.”

A Newer Strain

There is, however a distinct and more recent side to religion in UK politics, one influenced by American ideas of faith-based nationalism.

Tommy Robinson has started to portray himself as explicitly Christian, although much of this is done as a contrast 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 display of this, a Turning Point-allied Christian nationalist group called King’s Army paraded through Soho, a location apparently selected as it is the heart of London’s LGBT community.

Limited Influence

These elements remain, however, relatively marginal in UK politics. While critics sometimes portray certain figures as wealthy incubators of US-style evangelism, friends maintain they are little more than devout believers who are firmly against any political exploitation of faith.

Kruger is not shy of occasional off-piste language, for example in an address to censure what he said was a younger generation influenced by a blend of ideologies.

“In the UK you do have a few Christian nationalists, but when it comes to politics it more often be a sort of Christian nostalgia, linked to our historic identity,” noted an analyst.

One Christian MP with conservative views noted that while the issue of assisted dying had helped bring together MPs with faith, any links beyond that felt restricted.

“I certainly don’t get the sense of much of an organized faith-based lobby,” they said. “For me, my faith is more a foundation for what I personally hold. And here, religion is not particularly a decisive electoral issue.”