Richard Tice and his fiancée Isabel Oakeshott in Dubai (Image: Richard Tice)
Dubai looks nothing like a warzone, with supermarket shelves packed and cheerful locals out and about, according to Reform UK’s Richard Tice.
The party’s deputy leader is in the United Arab Emirates city visiting his fiancée, Isabel Oakeshott, and he is glad he did not perform a U-turn and abandon the trip when his phone lit up with images of destruction.
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He told Express: “I was on my way to Heathrow for a flight to the United Arab Emirates when social media began claiming Abu Dhabi airport had been hit.
“As Abu Dhabi was exactly where I was headed, on an Etihad flight, I wasn’t exactly optimistic. Scrolling through alarming-looking images of a building in flames as I sat on the Tube, I wondered if I should do a Starmer-style U-turn and go back.
“Good job I didn’t abandon the mission, because those pictures turned out to be fake. And while my flight wasn’t exactly packed with holidaymakers heading for the Gulf, it departed almost bang on time. Even better, I had the luxury of half the plane to myself.”
Despite reports of panicked social media “influencers” trying to flee Dubai, Mr Tice said he was “delighted to have headed in the opposite direction”.
“As [the UAE] comes under attack from Iran, fighting off a barrage of ballistic missiles and drones, it is important to show our solidarity,” he said. “Moreover, my fiancée and her children live in Dubai.
“Since the mad mullahs launched their outrageous and totally unprovoked offensive, I have wanted to be by her side – even if I can only escape my parliamentary and constituency duties for a very short while.”
Describing the city at this time of crisis in the Middle East, he said: “It’s all strangely normal. There are no buildings in smoking ruins; no empty supermarket shelves.
“On the contrary, Dubai is still glittering and very much alive. The Straits of Hormuz may be effectively closed, delaying international cargo, but branches of Waitrose and Carrefour in Dubai are so well stocked that their problem may become one of over-supply.
“Tonight, we’re going out to dinner – or perhaps we’ll order take out. There may be the occasional “take cover” alert, as the UAE Ministry of Defence does its job – to date, it has intercepted some 95% plus of missiles and drones – but it seems that almost everything is still available at the touch of a button.
“Sure, it’s quieter than usual, but residents are cheerfully out and about, enjoying the last few weeks of warm weather before the hot summer arrives.”
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Nigel Farage and Richard Tice have led Reform UK to the top of the polls (Image: Getty)
While Mr Tice branded the Labour Government’s response to the crisis a “total embarrassment”, he said the UAE was “resilient and determined”, and he will be meeting with local ministers.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage travelled to President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida to lobby against Sir Keir Starmer’s deal to hand sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
Mr Tice said: “Amid this historic crisis, we are where it matters: building relationships; forging alliances.”
Reform UK’s Richard Tice joins his fiancée in a ‘strangely normal’ Dubai
Richard Tice, the Reform UK deputy leader and MP for Boston and Skegness, has been spending time in Dubai with his fiancée, journalist and broadcaster Isabel Oakeshott, offering a glimpse into a more personal side of one of Britain’s increasingly prominent political figures.
The visit has attracted attention because Oakeshott has been based in Dubai since 2024, while Tice continues to divide his time between the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates. Their relationship has already placed the couple in the public eye, particularly as both have maintained high-profile careers in British politics and media.
For Tice, however, Dubai appears to represent something rather different from the political environment in Westminster.
Oakeshott has previously described everyday life in the city in remarkably ordinary terms, despite Dubai’s reputation for spectacular architecture, luxury developments and international business. During one update from the UAE, she described the atmosphere as “strangely normal”, a phrase that captured the contrast between the city’s global reputation and the routines of everyday life.
The couple’s presence in Dubai also comes against the background of a wider debate in Britain about taxation, wealth, international mobility and where successful individuals choose to live.
From Westminster politics to Dubai life
Tice has become an important figure within Reform UK since the party’s predecessor organisation was established. Before entering frontline politics, he built a career in business and property, including senior positions in the real-estate sector.
He later became closely associated with Britain’s Eurosceptic movement and was one of the leading figures behind the Brexit campaign. He eventually became leader of Reform UK before Nigel Farage returned to the leadership ahead of the 2024 general election.
Tice subsequently became the party’s deputy leader and has remained one of its most visible spokespeople.
His political role means that much of his public life is focused on Westminster, constituency politics and Reform UK’s increasingly prominent position in British politics. His relationship with Oakeshott, meanwhile, has brought a very different dimension to his public profile.
Oakeshott is a veteran political journalist and broadcaster who has worked for several major British media organisations. She gained particular attention for her reporting on political scandals and, in 2023, became widely known for publishing leaked WhatsApp messages involving former health secretary Matt Hancock.
She now works as an international editor and broadcaster and has made Dubai her base.
The Standard reported that Tice and Oakeshott have been together since 2018 and that Tice has three children from his previous marriage. The paper also reported that he splits his time between the UAE and his parliamentary constituency in Lincolnshire.
Why Dubai?
Dubai has become a destination for wealthy international residents, entrepreneurs, professionals and expatriates from around the world. For British nationals, the UAE’s tax system has also made it an attractive destination for some people with substantial international incomes.
Oakeshott’s relocation has therefore generated political discussion in Britain, particularly because of her involvement in political journalism and her public commentary on taxation.
Her move came as Britain was introducing major changes to the taxation of non-domiciled residents, a system that had historically provided tax advantages to certain wealthy international residents.
That does not mean that every British citizen living in Dubai has moved there for tax reasons, however. People relocate for many different reasons, including employment, business opportunities, family circumstances and lifestyle.
Oakeshott has spoken publicly about her life in the UAE, and Tice’s visits have subsequently become part of the public interest surrounding the couple.
In March 2026, for example, Oakeshott was quoted responding to criticism from Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey over British expatriates living in Dubai. Davey had questioned whether wealthy Britons living abroad should contribute more to the British tax system, while Oakeshott rejected the suggestion that expatriates were simply avoiding responsibility.
The supermarket test
One of the more unusual aspects of the couple’s Dubai life is how ordinary some of the reported experiences appear.
Dubai is often presented internationally through images of skyscrapers, luxury hotels, shopping centres and enormous developments. Yet the daily experience of residents can be considerably more mundane.
British supermarkets are part of that picture.
The appearance of Waitrose in Dubai has provided an example of how familiar British brands have become part of expatriate life in the UAE. For British residents abroad, being able to buy familiar products can make a foreign city feel considerably less foreign.
That may help explain the description of Dubai as “strangely normal”.
For someone accustomed to London, Manchester or another British city, finding familiar shops, restaurants and services thousands of miles from home can create an unexpected sense of continuity.
At the same time, Dubai remains very different from Britain in its political, legal and economic structures.
The UAE is a federation of seven emirates, with Dubai operating as one of its most internationally recognised commercial centres. Its population is overwhelmingly made up of expatriates, making it one of the world’s most internationally diverse urban environments.
A political irony?
Tice’s presence in Dubai inevitably intersects with Reform UK’s political arguments about Britain, immigration and national identity.
Reform UK has made immigration, border controls and reducing net migration central parts of its political programme. Tice himself has repeatedly argued for tighter immigration controls and stronger border enforcement.
Dubai, by contrast, is heavily dependent on international workers and expatriates.
The distinction is important, however.
The UAE’s immigration system is fundamentally different from Britain’s. Most foreign residents in the Emirates live there through employment, investment or other forms of residency permission rather than through a pathway comparable to permanent settlement in Britain.
Consequently, comparing Dubai’s expatriate population directly with Britain’s immigration system can obscure important differences.
The fact that Tice spends time in Dubai therefore does not, by itself, establish his position on any particular aspect of British immigration policy.
It does, however, provide an interesting backdrop to debates surrounding Reform UK and its senior figures.
Questions about wealth and politics
Tice’s relationship with Dubai has also received attention because of questions surrounding his finances and property interests.
The Guardian reported in 2026 that Tice had received what he described as an £80,000 personal loan from businessman George Cottrell in late 2024. According to the newspaper, the loan raised questions among bankers and others because of its possible connection with a property purchase in Dubai. The report also noted that Tice initially discussed using cash before subsequently saying he had obtained a mortgage.
These reports form part of a broader period of scrutiny of Reform UK’s finances and relationships with wealthy donors.
It is important to distinguish reported questions from established wrongdoing. Media investigations can raise issues requiring clarification without establishing that an individual has broken rules or laws.
Tice has remained active within Reform UK despite the attention.
A life divided between two worlds
Perhaps the most striking feature of the story is the contrast between Tice’s political life in Britain and the quieter personal dimension represented by Dubai.
In Britain, he is a prominent opposition politician, regularly discussing immigration, taxation, government spending, business and the future of the country.
In Dubai, the public image is considerably more mundane: spending time with his fiancée, visiting familiar shops and experiencing everyday life in a city that has become home to millions of expatriates.
That contrast is likely to continue attracting attention precisely because political figures rarely manage to separate their personal and professional lives completely.
Oakeshott’s career also ensures that the couple remains connected to Britain’s political conversation even when they are physically outside the country.
Their relationship sits at the intersection of politics, journalism, wealth and international mobility — four subjects that are already heavily debated in Britain.
More than a holiday destination
Dubai is sometimes portrayed simply as a luxury holiday destination, but for residents such as Oakeshott it is a place where ordinary routines take place alongside the extraordinary.
There are supermarkets, schools, offices, residential neighbourhoods and public transport, as well as the skyscrapers and luxury developments most commonly associated with the city.
That helps put the “strangely normal” description into context.
For Tice, meanwhile, Dubai appears to have become part of a life that remains centred politically on Britain but increasingly includes a second base thousands of miles away.
As Reform UK continues to expand its presence in British politics, the private lives of its leading figures are likely to remain subject to public interest.
For now, Tice’s time in Dubai provides an unusual picture of a politician whose working life is dominated by Westminster but whose personal life increasingly extends beyond Britain’s borders.
The result is a striking juxtaposition: a senior Reform UK politician, known for arguments about Britain’s borders, taxation and national future, spending time with his journalist fiancée in one of the world’s most international cities.
And perhaps that is precisely what makes the story so intriguing. Beneath the speeches, political battles and parliamentary arguments is something much more ordinary — a couple attempting to maintain a personal life while both remain deeply connected to the public world.