Matthew Goodwin took his failure to win in Gorton and Denton last week with characteristic good grace.
Walloped by the Greens’ Hannah Spencer, the charisma-free Reform UK candidate wrote on X: “We are losing our country. A dangerous Muslim sectarianism has emerged.” Party leader Nigel Farage added that the result was “a victory for sectarian voting and cheating”.
This wasn’t the first time Reform had levelled this attack-line at the Greens over the course of the byelection. While Muslims voting for a non-Muslim woman standing for a party led by a gay Jewish man doesn’t immediately reek of a sectarian scandal, the Greens got particular criticism for putting out a video in Urdu, aimed at Muslim communities in the diverse seat, in which they claimed Goodwin would “fuel the flames of Islamophobia”. In response, Goodwin accused the party of “blatant sectarianism”.
He added: “If you want an MP who will obsess over Gaza, prioritise the Muslim vote, and put some communities before others, then vote Green. But if you want an MP who will prioritise the people of Gorton & Denton, then vote Reform.”
But while criticising the Greens for supposedly putting one community ahead of another, Goodwin’s own campaign literature promised to do exactly that.
In an as yet unreported election leaflet circulated to constituents seen by Novara Media, Goodwin wrote: “I am writing to you because many people in this area have told me they are deeply concerned about the erosion of our country’s values, particularly our Christian heritage.
“I wanted to reassure you that Reform UK will always stand up for the Christian beliefs that have underpinned our laws, shaped our morality and formed the basis of our culture, for as long as this country has existed.”
The letter claimed that Farage has “called to defend the Christian foundations of our country” which are “under attack from the radical left”.
“I will not betray Christian values, I will fight for them and our shared cultural heritage,” Goodwin wrote.
Leo Simpson, the Green party’s South Tees membership officer, came across the leaflet when he was canvassing for the Greens in Gorton and Denton and saw a resident throw it out of their house onto the street, before handing it to Novara Media.
Simpson, who is a Christian, said: “I was upset, to be honest, because what Goodwin stands for isn’t Christianity. Christianity is supposed to be everyone in the same room coming together, celebrating the life of Jesus and God. Instead, we’ve got this far-right party using it as just another example to try and remove the Muslim vote.
“They’re just clutching at straws. … Reformers are sore losers.”
Simpson said he had been canvassing alongside two Urdu-speaking Green party members, which had enabled the party to “connect” with people who otherwise would have been difficult to reach, which was “really nice”.
“Why shouldn’t you be making something accessible for these people [Urdu speakers] so that they can [participate in] democracy?” he said.
Goodwin wouldn’t be the first anti-migrant political figure to adopt Christianity in his messaging, with Tommy Robinson – who endorsed Goodwin’s election campaign – claiming to have found the faith while in prison.
Reform UK has been contacted for comment.
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