Wes Streeting has slapped down claims that Nigel Farage could become the future prime minister by making two key points.
Polls have been recording Reform UK’s steady rise in public opinion since the July general election when they received 14.3% of the vote share, but only 0.8% of the seat share due to the First Past The Post voting system.
Then on Friday, pollsters at Find Out Now revealed that the party had overtaken the Tories and Labour, creeping ahead with 26% compared to their 23% and 22% respectively.
Reform leader Farage – who has suggested he could be prime minister before Donald Trump even leaves office – vowed that this was “just the beginning”.
Farage also taunted the Conservatives over Christmas by claiming Reform had more members than they did.
But, when asked if the Reform leader could actually be the next PM at the Fabian Society conference on Friday, health secretary Streeting completely dismissed it with two major observations.
He said that one of Farage’s “superpowers” is getting a lot of airtime – especially “for someone who got five MPs and doesn’t shine at the House of Commons”.
Streeting said: “Nigel Farage achieved a break through at the last election with five MPs. I think the Greens got roughly the same, four or five.
“No one is saying, ‘Carla Denyer [Green Party co-leader] come on down, are you the next progressive prime minister of this country?’”
He continued: “Ed Davey got the best result the modern liberal party have ever achieved. The Liberal Democrats have never got that many MPs.
“No one is saying, ‘Step forward, Ed Davey [Lib Dem leader].’ Davey-mania hasn’t happened.”
“I do think there has become this obsession – I do think it’s kind of driven by social media, what has reached, what gets clicks, serve the clicks get the reach rather than provide the serious analysis.
“Let’s not get too carried away by Nigel Farage.”
The cabinet member added: “We should keep it all in perspective. Whoever emerges on the right as the primary candidate for prime minister at the next election from the right, let’s be ready to take them on.”
Streeting also rejected Farage’s claims on LBC that he is “open to anything” when it comes to replacing the NHS with an “insurance-based model”.
Speaking on Sunday, the health secretary said: “With Reform, our NHS would be reduced to a poor service for poor people, with working people forced to pay to go private.
“Labour will rebuild our NHS so that it is there for everyone who needs it and, whenever you’re ill, you never have to worry about the bill.”
He continued: “Every single voter considering Reform needs to ask themselves if they could afford to pay for health insurance like patients have to elsewhere?
“There are elections in just three months time. Voters deserve straight talking from Reform about their plans to move to health insurance.”