{
  "id": 18286174,
  "title": "Farage’s Reform gets serious on defense",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/05/farages-reform-gets-serious-on-defense",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-11-05T10:02:08.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Politico EU",
    "slug": "politico-eu",
    "url": "https://www.politico.eu/article/nigel-farage-reform-uk-gets-serious-on-defense/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Defense and concerns about Russia are among the top worries for British voters, but Reform UK has struggled to develop a comprehensive defense policy. The party has spent over two years without a dedicated spokesperson and lacks a detailed military policy, leaving them at a disadvantage compared to the Labour government's focus on defense spending. Reform now aims to rectify this with the appointment of Angus MacIntyre as its new defense spokesperson. MacIntyre, who served 40 years in the Royal Air Force, will help the party create a defense policy ahead of the next election. Party leader Nigel Farage emphasized the importance of someone with MacIntyre's experience and credibility to speak on defense issues. MacIntyre criticized both Conservative and Labour governments for underfunding the military and claimed only Reform UK can rebuild the armed forces. The delay in setting out a defense policy has been attributed to the party's desire to \"get it right\" rather than create piecemeal ideas that could be attacked by opponents. However, Reform's stance on Ukraine has been mixed, with Farage calling Kyiv \"corrupt\" and proposing to review Britain's military aid. Reform's defense priorities align closely with voter concerns, including cracking down on immigration, boosting benefits for military personnel, and increasing defense spending to 3% of GDP by 2030.",
  "summary": "Reform UK unveiled its dedicated spokesperson for the armed forces on Thursday.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}