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During recent Reform UK media events, a pair of notable figures can often be seen in the forefront: the pale hair of Danny Kruger and the styled blond hair of senior adviser James Orr.

Beyond shaping the policy programme for what could be the UK’s future administration, the pair have something else in common. Each is a deeply committed believer who came to religion in adulthood, and hold strong opinions on matters of society such as abortion and the family.

A Network of Faith

Kruger, an MP, who defected from the Conservatives, and Orr, a Cambridge academic, are members of the advisory board of a rightwing thinktank known as the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

Another member is the financier Paul Marshall, the investment tycoon who owns GB News and the conservative Spectator magazine. He is also a devout Christian.

“Religion, specifically evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been a key characteristic of US rightwing politics,” its followers providing the core of a particular political support.

Transatlantic Links

There are some links. Orr is personally connected to the US Vice-President that he has welcomed him at his family home. Orr is also active in the National Conservatism movement, which has connections to the US religious-populism world.

But any closer parallels quickly break down due to a simple matter of numbers. While surveys indicate that close to a fourth of US adults are evangelical Christians, the figure for the UK is roughly one-tenth of that at the very most.

The UK Evangelical Vote

An additional important factor to take into account. While US evangelicals lean firmly to the right, new polling by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance indicate the wider picture in Britain is quite different.

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

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

“Sometimes with evangelicals there can be a gap between opinions, particularly regarding social issues, and how people vote,” explained a representative. “For example, someone might have a strong opinion on abortion, but they don’t see voting as likely to lead to change.”

Cross-Party Belief

Evangelical belief does exist in parliament, including cross-party prayer group meetings. But it is a phenomenon also of the left, with figures like Kruger countered by Tim Farron and the Labour Party Member of Parliament Rachael Maskell.

Maskell is very open about how her beliefs informs her politics, notably on issues such as economic disadvantage.

“Ethical fairness was ‘a big part’ of the party's ethos,” Maskell argued. “It’s part of our roots, how we think about inequality in society, ensuring we have a fair framework.”

A Newer Strain

There is, however a different and newer side to religion in UK politics, one influenced by American ideas of religious nationalism.

The activist Tommy Robinson has begun to present himself as openly a Christian, although much of this is done as a counterpoint to Islam.

In a similar vein, Nick Tenconi, who leads the UK branch of the Turning Point group, includes social media messaging about the country needing to “re-embrace Christianity” combined with anti-Islam content.

One striking 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

All this remains, however, relatively marginal in UK politics. While critics sometimes depict certain figures as wealthy incubators of US-style evangelism, associates maintain they are simply observant believers who are firmly against any politicisation of faith.

He has been not shy of sometimes unconventional language, for example in an address to censure what he said was a younger generation influenced by a mix of ideologies.

“Here in Britain you do have some Christian nationalists, but when it comes to politics it tends to be a sort of Christian nostalgia, linked to our historic identity,” noted an analyst.

A parliamentarian of faith on the right noted that while the issue of assisted dying had helped bring together MPs with faith, any connections beyond that felt limited.

“I certainly don’t get the sense of much of an evangelical lobby,” they commented. “For me, my faith is more a foundation for what I already believe. And here, religion is not particularly a vote winner.”