Reform’s ‘Shadow Chancellor’ Robert Jenrick campaigned with Nigel Farage in Redcar on Monday (Image: Andy Commins)

Voters in Britain’s former industrial heartlands have been “betrayed” by the Conservatives and taken for granted by Labour, according to the man Nigel Farage wants to appoint Chancellor in a Reform UK Government. Robert Jenrick, who once battled Kemi Badenoch for the Tory leadership, visited the iconic Red Wall seat of Redcar on Monday and set out his ambitions for Reform to be the true “workers’ party”. The 44-year-old walked along the seafront and described how the voters who handed the seat to Boris Johnson’s Conservatives in 2019 feel “totally betrayed by that government”, blasting the former prime minister’s “fanatical” support for net zero and the Tories’ record on immigration.

Turning his fire on a former Hartlepool MP, he said: “The truth is this area had Labour politicians who took it for granted, like Peter Mandelson, who just saw these as safe Labour seats where they could have a nice perch and do what they wanted down in Westminster.” Mr Jenrick is fighting for Reform to win in seats which “voted for change” in 2019 before backing Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour party in 2024 and discovering this is “even worse”. He said: “This cycle of constant failure and betrayal has to come to an end. That’s the point of Reform.”

Setting out his ambitions for the party which was in second place in Politico’s poll of polls on Monday on 22% – behind Andy Burnham’s Labour (26%) but ahead of Mrs Badenoch’s Conservatives (18%) – he said: “I want Reform to be a workers’ party. Everything [we do] should be putting British workers and pensioners who’ve worked hard their whole lives first. That means that my job is to cut all the waste, the stuff that other governments just won’t tackle, like foreign aid, migrants on benefits and net zero subsidies, and use the tens of billions that we save [to] make life better for people in places like this.”

Describing a flagship policy, he said: “We want to raise the personal allowance to £15,000 so that an average worker in a place like Redcar can get £500 extra a year – £1,000 if you’re a family with two people in the workplace.”

His party is a proud defender of the triple lock, the safeguard against pensioner poverty which Mr Burnham wants to alter to fund a National Care Service. Confident that as Chancellor he could help revive the centre of the town, he said: “If we can save industry in the north of England by scrapping net zero then we give these businesses a fighting chance of recovering.”

Redcar’s steelworks have been closed since 2015 but taxpayers are spending £1.3million a day, according to Westminster’s public accounts committee, keeping British Steel’s blast furnaces at Scunthorpe open to preserve the country’s primary steelmaking capacity. “We have to keep them open, and we’ve got to invest in their future,” Mr Jenrick said. “At the moment you’ve got a Government that doesn’t really have any plan as to how to make this a viable industry into the future. So, they’re just wasting millions of pounds on sticking plasters and consultants instead of really working out a viable path forward. The only way to do that is bring down the cost of energy by scrapping net zero and potentially stick tariffs on Chinese imports of steel and other products like cars to stop people dumping on our industry here and destroying the remaining jobs in heavy industry. At the moment Reform is the only party that’s willing to do that.”

He is not impressed by Mr Burnham’s pledge to set out options for a new partnership with the European Union, arguing the UK has performed better in recent years than comparable EU economies.

“[The] problems our country faces are not because of Brexit and the worst thing that we could do now is spend the next five to 10 years in another pointless debate about Britain’s relationship with the European Union,” he said.

However, the former immigration minister is damning in his account of Britain’s record in this area since Brexit. He claimed his old party “managed to design an immigration system even more liberal than the one that we had in the EU, where we traded high-skilled, motivated people from Eastern Europe for low-skilled workers”.

Claiming that post-Brexit “opportunities are out there to be seized”, he said: “We can fix this. I am optimistic on the economy that we can turn things around… If you have a Government that comes in with a serious plan it can create a climate of optimism very quickly and get things moving again.”

Robert Jenrick is on track to run the Treasury in a Reform UK Government (Image: Andy Commins)

If he moves into the Treasury, he may face many of the same challenges which today confront Chancellor John Healey as he wrestles with numerous threats to the public finances. Does he fear market panic? Mr Jenrick said that neither the Conservatives nor Labour had “instilled enthusiasm” in the markets. “We’ve had Liz Truss’s mini-budget, Rachel Reeves crying in the House of Common, John Healey making promises he can’t keep,” he said. “I think there’s actually an opportunity to come in and surprise the markets [and show] that for the first time in a long time they’ve got serious people running this country. The way to do it, actually, is cutting the benefits bill. That’s what is the number one thing you could do, very quickly, to instil confidence in the bond markets.”

Bringing down benefits payments, he said, would show investors that “we’re serious people who know what we’re doing and we’re going to be careful with people’s money”. Mr Jenrick joined Reform in January after being sacked as Shadow Justice Secretary by Mrs Badenoch. Did it feel strange for him not to be with former colleagues in Birmingham for the annual conference?

He said: “I always like going to Birmingham because I was born in Wolverhampton… But no, I [am] actually very pleased to be in Reform and this feels like home to me, so it’s been great.”

Days later, after Mrs Badenoch had delivered her conference speech and pledged to exempt family homes from inheritance tax, Mr Jenrick told the Express: “The Tories have given up on working people, in favour of their mates in Kensington. Andy Burnham abandoned them too to court votes on Benefits Street. Reform is the only national party interested in cutting taxes on the hard-working majority. That’s why in my first Budget I will raise the tax-free personal allowance to £15,000 to give 40 million a tax cut. It’ll mean the state pension is never taxed and work pays again.”

The ‘Abandoned’ UK Seaside Town ‘Betrayed’ by Burnham and Boris – ‘We’ll Give Locals £500’

Redcar, once a thriving industrial and seaside community in the north-east of England, has become the centre of a growing political debate after Reform UK promised to put struggling local residents first. The town, which has experienced decades of industrial decline, has been described as an example of how successive governments have failed communities that once played an important role in Britain’s industrial economy.

During a visit to Redcar, Reform UK’s senior figure Robert Jenrick launched a strong attack on both Labour and the Conservatives, accusing them of taking working-class communities for granted. His remarks came as he joined Nigel Farage in promoting the party’s economic vision and attempting to win support in former industrial constituencies.

Jenrick argued that residents who supported Boris Johnson’s Conservatives in the 2019 general election had subsequently been disappointed by the government’s performance. Many had voted for change because they wanted stronger economic opportunities, improved public services and renewed investment in their communities. Instead, he claimed, they felt that political promises had not translated into meaningful improvements.

He also criticised Labour politicians for treating traditional industrial constituencies as guaranteed sources of electoral support. According to Jenrick, communities such as Redcar have repeatedly been promised economic regeneration without receiving the long-term investment necessary to rebuild their local economies.

His message was particularly direct: the cycle of political promises followed by disappointment must come to an end.

Redcar’s industrial history explains why the issue carries such emotional significance. The town was once closely associated with steel production, providing thousands of jobs and supporting businesses throughout the surrounding area. The closure of the steelworks in 2015 marked a devastating turning point for the local economy.

For generations, steelmaking represented more than employment. It provided families with financial security, supported local shops and services and created a strong sense of community identity. When the industry disappeared, the consequences extended far beyond the workers who directly lost their jobs.

Local businesses faced reduced demand, younger people encountered fewer employment opportunities and the town struggled to replace the economic activity that had previously sustained it.

Jenrick believes that Reform UK can offer a different approach. He wants the party to become a genuine workers’ party, concentrating on the financial security of ordinary employees, pensioners and families who feel neglected by Westminster.

One of his most significant proposals is to increase the income tax personal allowance from £12,570 to £15,000. According to Jenrick, this would provide an average worker with approximately £500 in additional income each year. A household with two people working could potentially benefit by around £1,000 annually.

The proposal is intended to reduce the tax burden on working people and leave more money in household budgets. Reform argues that workers should retain a greater proportion of the money they earn rather than seeing their incomes increasingly affected by taxation.

However, the proposal would have substantial implications for government revenue. Reform would need to explain precisely how the reduction would be financed and whether savings elsewhere in public expenditure would be sufficient to cover the cost.

Jenrick has suggested that the money could be found by reducing foreign aid, cutting certain welfare payments and ending subsidies associated with net-zero policies. He believes that billions of pounds could be redirected towards British workers and struggling communities.

Another major issue raised during the visit was the future of Britain’s steel industry. Redcar’s former steelworks closed more than a decade ago, while the country’s remaining primary steelmaking capacity continues to face significant economic pressures.

Jenrick argued that high energy costs and international competition have made it increasingly difficult for British manufacturers to remain competitive. He believes that the government should reconsider its approach to net-zero policies and introduce stronger protections against cheap imported steel.

He also supports the possibility of tariffs on Chinese steel and other products, arguing that British manufacturers should not be placed at an unfair disadvantage by international competitors.

His position reflects a wider disagreement about Britain’s industrial future. Supporters of stronger environmental policies argue that investment in clean technology can create new jobs and establish Britain as a leader in emerging industries. Critics believe that the transition must be managed carefully to avoid destroying existing employment opportunities before replacement industries become viable.

For Redcar, the challenge is particularly important. Residents need realistic employment opportunities rather than promises about industries that may take years to develop.

Jenrick also criticised the government’s approach to Britain’s relationship with the European Union. Andy Burnham has indicated that closer cooperation with European partners could help British businesses and improve economic performance.

However, Jenrick argued that Brexit should not become the subject of another prolonged political debate. He believes the government should concentrate on domestic economic problems rather than reopening arguments about Britain’s constitutional relationship with Europe.

He also criticised the Conservatives’ immigration record, claiming that the post-Brexit immigration system had failed to deliver the tighter controls that voters expected.

The political significance of the Redcar visit is considerable. Reform UK is attempting to attract voters who supported Boris Johnson in 2019 before switching to Labour in 2024. These constituencies are important because they contain many communities that have experienced industrial decline and feel disconnected from national political decision-making.

Farage wants Reform to become a credible alternative for these voters by combining stricter immigration policies, lower taxation and greater support for domestic industry.

However, the party faces important questions about how its proposals would work in practice. Cutting taxes while maintaining the NHS, improving infrastructure and supporting pensioners requires a carefully planned financial strategy.

There is also the question of whether abandoning certain environmental policies would genuinely restore industrial employment or create additional economic and legal challenges.

For local residents, political arguments will ultimately matter less than tangible improvements. They want secure employment, better transport, affordable housing and opportunities for younger generations to build their futures without leaving the communities where they grew up.

Redcar’s difficulties also reflect a wider problem affecting British coastal and former industrial towns. Many have experienced declining traditional industries, limited private investment and difficulties attracting new businesses. Government reports have previously recognised that seaside communities often require long-term and coordinated investment rather than short-term funding announcements.

The challenge facing politicians is to ensure that regeneration programmes create sustainable economic activity instead of temporary improvements that disappear when government funding ends.

Ultimately, Jenrick’s visit has placed Redcar back into the national political conversation. His promise of an additional £500 a year for working people is designed to demonstrate that Reform wants to address the financial pressures facing ordinary households. Nevertheless, the party will need to provide detailed evidence that its wider economic programme can deliver the promised benefits.

In conclusion, Redcar’s story is about much more than the decline of a former steel town. It reflects the frustrations of communities that believe successive governments have failed to deliver the economic renewal they were promised. Robert Jenrick and Nigel Farage are attempting to turn that dissatisfaction into political support by offering lower taxes, industrial protection and a different approach to public spending. Whether these proposals can transform struggling communities remains to be seen. What is clear is that residents deserve more than another round of political promises. They need lasting investment, secure jobs and a genuine opportunity to rebuild their town’s economic future.