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At 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 styled blond hair of James Orr.

As well as guiding the policy programme for what might become the UK’s future administration, the duo share another trait in common. Each is a highly devout Christian who came to religion in adulthood, and hold strong opinions on social issues such as abortion and the family.

A Network of Faith

Kruger, an MP, who defected from the Conservatives, and Orr, a Cambridge academic, also sit on the advisory board of a conservative policy group called the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

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

“Faith, particularly Protestant evangelism, 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 JD Vance that he has hosted him at his private residence. Orr is also active in the National Conservatism movement, which has ties to the US religious-populism world.

However, direct comparisons soon fall down due to a simple matter of scale. While polling shows that nearly a fourth of US adults are evangelical Christians, the proportion for the UK is about a tenth of that at the very most.

A Different Landscape

An additional crucial element to consider. While US evangelicals tilt strongly to the political 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 shows Labour in the first place with 26% support. The Reform party and Liberal Democrats are tied on 20%, with the Conservatives on 18%.

Further polling demonstrate support among evangelicals for increased welfare payments, but also significant concern about plans to legalise assisted suicide.

“Among evangelicals there can be a dissonance between opinions, especially on social issues, and how people vote,” said one advocacy head. “As an instance, someone might have a firm stance on abortion, but they don’t see voting as likely to lead to change.”

Faith Across the Aisle

Evangelism does exist in parliament, including all-party prayer group meetings. But it is a phenomenon also of the political left, with figures like Kruger balanced out by Tim Farron and the Labour Party Member of Parliament Rachael Maskell.

Maskell is explicit about how faith shapes her politics, especially concerning issues such as economic disadvantage.

“Ethical fairness was ‘a big part’ of Labour politics,” she stated. “It stems from our foundations, how we think about disparity 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 faith-based nationalism.

The activist Tommy Robinson has started to present himself as openly a Christian, though a lot of this is done as a counterpoint to Islam.

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

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

Limited Influence

All this remains, however, fairly niche in UK politics. While critics sometimes portray certain figures as wealthy incubators of US-style evangelism, friends maintain they are little more than observant believers who are firmly against any political exploitation of faith.

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

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

A parliamentarian of faith 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. “In my view, my faith is more a basis for what I personally hold. And here, religion is not really a vote winner.”