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During recent the Reform party press conferences, a pair of notable heads can often be seen in the front row: the pale hair of Danny Kruger and the swept-back blond mane of James Orr.

As well as guiding the political agenda for what could be the UK’s future administration, the duo share another trait in common. Both are deeply committed Christian who found religion in later life, and possess trenchant views on social issues such as abortion and the traditional family unit.

A Network of Faith

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

Another member is the financier Paul Marshall, the hedge fund millionaire who controls GB News and the conservative Spectator magazine. Marshall is a devout Christian.

“Faith, particularly evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been one of the defining elements of American conservative politics,” its followers providing the core of Donald Trump’s support.

Transatlantic Links

Parallels do exist. Orr is sufficiently close to JD Vance that he has welcomed him at his private residence. Orr is also involved in the NatCon movement, which has connections to the US religious-populism world.

But any closer parallels quickly break down due to a simple matter of scale. While polling shows that close to a quarter of US adults are evangelicals, the proportion for the UK is roughly one-tenth of that at most.

A Different Landscape

There is another important factor to take into account. While US evangelicals lean firmly to the right, new polling by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance suggests that the wider picture in Britain is markedly distinct.

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

Further polling reveal support among evangelicals for more generous welfare payments, but also significant concern about plans to permit assisted dying.

“Among evangelicals there can be a gap between personal views, particularly regarding social issues, and how people vote,” said one advocacy head. “For example, someone might have a strong opinion on abortion, but they do not view voting as likely to lead to change.”

Faith Across the Aisle

Evangelical belief is present in parliament, including cross-party faith-based meetings. But it is a reality also of the political left, with figures like Kruger balanced out by the Lib Dem Tim Farron and the Labour Party Member of Parliament Rachael Maskell.

Maskell is very open about how faith informs her politics, especially concerning issues such as poverty.

“Ethical fairness was ‘a big part’ of the party's ethos,” she stated. “It’s part of our foundations, how we think about inequality in society, making sure we have a just system.”

Emerging Currents

Nonetheless, there exists a distinct and more recent side to religion in UK politics, one more closely modelled on American ideas of faith-based nationalism.

Tommy Robinson has begun to portray himself as openly a Christian, though a lot 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 “re-embrace Christianity” alongside anti-Muslim content.

In a dramatic manifestation of this, a Turning Point-allied nationalist Christian group called King’s Army paraded through Soho, a location seemingly chosen as it is the heart of London’s LGBT community.

Limited Influence

These elements remain, however, fairly niche in UK politics. While commentators sometimes portray certain figures as wealthy incubators of American-style religious politics, friends maintain they are simply observant believers who are strongly opposed to any political exploitation of faith.

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

“Here in Britain you do have some Christian nationalists, but when it comes to politics it more often be a sort of Christian nostalgia, linked to our historical character,” said one commentator.

One Christian MP on the right observed that while the issue of assisted dying had helped bring together MPs with faith, any connections beyond that felt limited.

“I do not get the sense of much of an organized faith-based lobby,” they commented. “For me, my faith is more a basis for what I personally hold. And here, religion is not really a vote winner.”