Starmer Urged To Do More To Tackle Reform: 'We Are At A Very Dangerous Moment'

Keir Starmer needs a stronger plan to defeat the “existential threat” from populism, a former Labour strategist has warned.

Chris Powell, the advertising strategist who worked on Tony Blair’s 1997 landslide victory and brother to Starmer’s national security adviser Jonathan Powell, said there was a “new and terrifying” problem facing the UK.

Writing for the Guardian, he said Nigel Farage’sReform UK could represent a danger to democracy and national institutions.

He compared the up and coming right-wing party to populist parties seen around the world which have eroded political systems once they are in power.

Powell said: “Here in the UK, where is the urgently needed counter plan on a huge scale, to thwart and head off such an existential threat? It is simply not in place, nor does it appear to be even at the planning stage.

“We are at a very dangerous moment. We simply cannot afford to allow Reform UK to have a free run, and become established and entrenched as a credible potential government in the minds of disenchanted voters.”

He warned the longer Reform remain “unchallenged”, the more “unthreatening and risk-free” they appear to voters.

“Just hoping that Reform and Farage implode, or that the rightwing vote will somehow fracture, is potentially suicidal for our freedom and democracy,” Powell said.

The strategist acknowledged that Labour has started to take “small steps” to counter Reform, but called for them to go further.

He pointed to the “fundamental reset” New Labour planned in September 1995, when they were ahead in the polls.

He urged Starmer to focus on “fighting fire with fire on messaging, call out lies and expose Farage’s simplistic solutions”.

Urging a “top-to-bottom media and communications overhaul”, he said Starmer needs to show he is on voters’ side and develop a digital strategy to disrupt the populist narrative online.

Since Reform UK took the lead in the opinion polls, Starmer has acknowledged the party as the government’s main opposition – despite having just five MPs.

The prime minister has tried to take apart their policies on various occasions, memorably saying last month that a Reform government would “tear Britain apart”.

Ministers have also been more outspoken about the negative consequences of Brexit, which Eurosceptic Farage spent decades campaigning for.

However, YouGov’s latest polling shows Reform has consistently been in the lead since April and finished 2025 on 26%, while Labour and the Tories trailed on 19%.