Elon Musk, never one to shy away from a political dust-up, has once again thrown himself into the heart of British politics—this time, with a bold endorsement of the fledgling right-wing party Advance UK and a volley of criticism aimed squarely at Nigel Farage, the high-profile leader of Reform UK. The tech billionaire’s latest foray comes at a moment when British politics seems more fractured than ever, with established parties losing ground and new contenders eager to seize the spotlight.
On September 28, 2025, Musk took to his social media platform X to urge his followers, “Go with @_AdvanceUK, Ben [Habib] and Tommy [Robinson] for the real change that’s needed to save Britain!” Not stopping there, he doubled down in another post, declaring, “Advance UK will actually drive change. Farage is weak sauce who will do nothing.” The message was clear: Musk sees Advance UK, led by Ben Habib and supported by the controversial activist Tommy Robinson, as the true force for disruption, not the surging Reform UK party under Farage’s leadership.
This isn’t Musk’s first foray into the British political arena. Earlier in September, he addressed tens of thousands at the “Unite the Kingdom” rally in London via video link, a gathering organized by Robinson. In that address, Musk didn’t mince words, condemning the political left as “the party of murder.” He also took a swipe at Farage, asserting that the man who could soon be Britain’s prime minister “doesn’t have what it takes.” These remarks, made before Advance UK’s official emergence, set the tone for Musk’s escalating involvement.
Advance UK, now on the cusp of official registration, is led by Ben Habib, who previously served as co-deputy chairman of Reform UK. According to the Daily Telegraph, Habib is positioning the party as a radical alternative to the established order. “The two-party system is dead,” Habib declared. “The Conservatives and Labour Party have had their chance, and now the people want something new.” He didn’t hold back on his former party, either, claiming, “Reform will not deliver. It stands for nothing. It is a populist party without a political philosophy and without intellectual heft or capability.” In Habib’s view, Farage is “nothing more than a political expedient” and “would be worse than [former Prime Minister] Boris Johnson.”
But what does the data say about Britain’s appetite for change? According to polling organization YouGov, public disillusionment with political leaders is running high. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, and Farage himself all received unfavorable ratings between 52% and 68%. Yet, despite Farage’s negative numbers, Reform UK leads in the polls for a hypothetical general election, as reported by Ipsos. Alan Mendoza, executive director of the Henry Jackson Society, noted, “If there was an election tomorrow, then [Reform UK] would likely win.” But he cautioned against reading too much into current polling, reminding observers that “the golden law of British politics is you can’t predict the vote that far ahead.”
Mendoza also raised questions about the broader implications of the current political fragmentation. “You clearly don’t have a two-party system,” he observed, but wondered whether the new landscape could produce a stable majority government or a viable main opposition party in the long run.
Advance UK’s rise hasn’t been without controversy. The party’s association with Tommy Robinson, a figure often at the center of political storms, may be a double-edged sword. During the recent “Unite the Kingdom” rally, some protestors allegedly attacked police officers—a development that, according to Mendoza, could backfire. “Most people will not like violence at a political rally,” he said. “And they won’t support the party.”
Underlying much of the political turbulence is the issue of immigration, a topic that has fueled public frustration for years. In the 12 months through June 2025, almost 50,000 undocumented immigrants arrived in Britain, up from around 39,000 the previous year, according to government data cited by the Daily Telegraph. The newspaper also reported that migrants accounted for 98% of the country’s latest population rise, with the Office for National Statistics estimating the mid-2024 population at 69.3 million—an increase of more than 755,000 from the previous year.
Habib is unequivocal on the subject: “We need a holistic solution to reduce immigration,” he said, insisting that borders must be enforced and illegal migrants deported. He also highlighted the financial burden on taxpayers, noting that asylum seekers are being housed in hotels at a staggering cost of £5.8 million ($7.4 million) per day. The issue has sparked protests, such as those earlier this summer in Epping, southeast England, where anger over asylum hotels boiled over. During these protests, Farage suspended a local councilor over accusations of racism—a move that drew Musk’s ire. On X, Musk wrote, “Farage is weak, runny sauce. He won’t let Reform even stand up for their own people, e.g. punishing their Epping member, and he will change nothing of significance politically.”
The debate over free speech has also intensified. Earlier in 2025, Irish comedian Graham Linehan was reportedly met by armed police at Heathrow Airport after making online comments about transgender people—a sign, some argue, of tightening restrictions on public discourse. Incidents like this have become “fast becoming the norm,” observers say, further fueling calls for political and cultural change.
Despite Musk’s harsh assessment of Farage, Reform UK’s momentum appears undiminished. A YouGov poll released on September 26, 2025, showed the party on course to deliver a “massive defeat” to Prime Minister Starmer’s Labour government if an election were held today. Farage, for his part, is bullish about Reform UK’s prospects. As quoted by the Daily Telegraph, he said, “The growth of the party has been astonishing,” adding, “we’re now coming for Labour.”
Meanwhile, the spectacle of the “Unite the Kingdom” rally on September 13, 2025, with protesters waving Union Jack and St George’s England flags on Westminster Bridge, underscored the volatile mix of nationalism, discontent, and political ambition now swirling through British public life. The question remains: will Musk’s intervention and the rise of Advance UK truly reshape the political landscape, or will the old patterns endure?
As Britain stands at a crossroads, the coming months promise more drama, more debate, and perhaps—just perhaps—the kind of upheaval that Musk and others are calling for. Until then, the nation watches, waits, and wonders what political surprises lie ahead.
