Zia Yusuf QUITS as Reform UK chairman

Zia Yusuf dramatically resigned as Reform UK's chairman tonight as the Nigel Farage-led party descended into fresh chaos.

The multi-millionaire businessman said he no longer believed that working for Reform to win power at the next general election was 'a good use of my time'.

His shock departure came just hours after he hit out at one of Reform's own MPs for a 'dumb' question in the House of Commons about banning the burka.

He publicly questioned why Sarah Pochin, Reform's recently-elected MP for Runcorn and Helsby, had challenged the Prime Minister about the issue on Wednesday.

There were also reports that Mr Yusuf had recently been 'sidelined' within Reform, including claims that some of his responsibilities had been passed elsewhere. 

Mr Farage this evening said he was 'genuinely sorry' at Mr Yusuf's exit, adding the financier was a 'huge factor' in Reform's success at May's local elections.

'Politics can be a highly pressured and difficult game and Zia has clearly had enough,' the Reform leader added. 'He is a loss to us and public life.'

In a further dramatic development, Nathaniel Fried - who had only days ago been drafted in by Reform to lead the party's 'DOGE' cost-cutting unit in local councils - also quit tonight.

The latest Reform chaos comes after Great Yarmouth MP Rupert Lowe was kicked out of the party in March after he criticised Mr Farage's leadership.

Mr Yusuf announced his resignation on social media on Thursday night, posting on X/Twitter: '11 months ago I became Chairman of Reform. 

'I've worked full time as a volunteer to take the party from 14 to 30 per cent [in the polls], quadrupled its membership and delivered historic electoral results.

'I no longer believe working to get a Reform government elected is a good use of my time, and hereby resign the office.'

In his own social media post, Mr Farage said: 'I am genuinely sorry that Zia Yusuf has decided to stand down as Reform UK Chairman.

'As I said just last week, he was a huge factor in our success on May 1st and is an enormously talented person.

'Politics can be a highly pressured and difficult game and Zia has clearly had enough. He is a loss to us and public life.'

Mr Yusuf's resignation came on the day Reform hopes to cause an upset in Scotland, where it is contesting a Holyrood by-election in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse.

Scottish First Minister John Swinney has described the contest as a 'two-horse race' between his SNP and Reform.

Shortly after Mr Yusuf announced his departure, Mr Fried - a 28-year-old tech entrepreneur - revealed he would also be quitting the party. 

On Monday, he was unveiled as the head of Reform's 'DOGE' team of software engineers, data analysts and forensic auditors who will 'visit and analyse' local authorities controlled by the party.

Reform pledged the new unit will look at 'wasteful spending' in councils, in a mirror of Tesla boss Elon Musk's cost-cutting efforts in America under Donald Trump.

But, announcing his own exit this evening, Mr Fried said: 'I have a huge amount of respect for the work that the councils are doing to save taxpayer money and reduce wastage.

'Zia Yusuf got me in and I believe it is appropriate for me to leave with him. I have absolute confidence that the Reform DOGE will succeed without me.'

He also quipped: 'Liz Truss lasted longer than me at DOGE!' 

Tim Montgomerie, a political commentator and Reform member, described Mr Yusuf's exit as a 'massive, massive setback' for the party.

He added that Mr Farage was 'very upset' by Mr Yusuf's resignation, which leaves 'a very big hole'.

'He was absolutely essential to what Reform were doing in terms of modernisation,' Mr Montgomerie told Times Radio of Mr Yusuf's role as chairman.

'The success and the professionalisation of Reform has owed an awful lot to him.

'I don't fully know what's happened in the last 24 hours, but I know he was very upset about the burka question that was asked by the new Reform MP for Runcorn.

'I think he has experienced quite a lot of personal nastiness on social media…because of it.

'He's a Muslim and I wonder whether that got to him a little bit.'

Mr Montgomerie added: 'He's not been an angel. He's a man in a hurry and I think he's upset a lot of people in Reform by some of the professionalisation and some of the internal reforms that he's made. I'm sure he hasn't always carried out those well.'

Earlier on Thursday, Mr Yusuf had taken a swipe at Ms Pochin for declaring her support for a burka ban during Prime Minister's Questions this week. 

Ms Pochin asked Sir Keir Starmer if he would support outlawing the burka - which is worn by some Muslim women - 'in the interests of public safety'.

But Reform officials sowed confusion by later revealing that banning the burka is not the party's official policy.

In a hint at an internal party row, Mr Yusuf posted on X: 'I do think it's dumb for a party to ask the PM if they would do something the party itself wouldn't do.'

The Reform chairman said that Ms Pochin's question was 'nothing to do with me' as he was 'busy with other stuff'.

'Had no idea about the question nor that it wasn't policy,' he added.

In another post, he wrote: 'Just to be clear, I learnt about the question and the party's position re it not being policy for the first time on my X feed. I'm busy with UK DOGE.'

Ms Pochin's question during PMQs on Wednesday triggered disquiet in the Commons and cries of 'shame' from other MPs.

She asked Sir Keir: 'Given the PM's desire to strengthen strategic alignment with our European neighbours, will he in the interests of public safety follow the lead of  France, Denmark, Belgium and others and ban the burka?'

The PM did not answer Ms Pochin's question but instead took the opportunity to attack Reform's economic plans - as set out by Mr Farage last week.

After PMQs, Lee Anderson, one of Ms Pochin's fellow Reform MPs, also gave his public backing to a burka ban.

Yet, despite two out of the five Reform MPs supporting a ban, a party spokesman said it was 'not party policy' - although they added it was an issue that 'needs a national debate'.

Mr Farage sowed further confusion over Reform's stance by using his GB News show to question the use of all face coverings in public places, saying the 'debate actually goes beyond the burka'.

'I don't think face coverings in public places make sense, and I think we do deserve debate about that, which I see the burka as being a part,' Mr Farage said.

'It's a tough one. It is a very difficult debate, but it's a debate.'

At the 2010 general election, Mr Farage stood for UKIP - his former party - on a manifesto that called for a ban on both the burka and niqab.

But he later disowned UKIP's 2010 manifesto as 'drivel' when he returned as the party's leader after the contest.

Responding to Mr Yusuf's resignation, a Labour spokesperson said: 'If Nigel Farage can't manage a handful of politicians, how on earth could he run a country?

'He has fallen out with everyone he has ever worked with. Reform are just not serious.

'The Reform chair has done a runner so that he doesn't have to front up Farage's £80billion in unfunded cuts, which would spark a Liz Truss-style economic meltdown.

'Farage's plans would put up every single mortgage in the country and hammer family finances, while forcing them to buy private healthcare.

'Working people simply can't afford the risk of Reform UK.'

Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: 'By sacking himself, Zia Yusuf seems to be leading the 'UK DOGE' by example.

'You have to admire his commitment to the cause. It's already clear Reform UK cannot deliver for the communities they are elected to stand up for.

'Instead, they have copied the Conservative playbook of fighting like rats in a sack.'