Neville Watson, the only Black branch chair of Reform UK, has resigned from the rightwing populist party, claiming Britain’s migration debate is “doing more harm than good.” Watson, from north London, said although had not encountered racism within Reform and said there were “a lot of good people” in the party, he was disturbed by the growing presence of Christian nationalism. He also expressed alarm at increasing Islamophobia, warning that some within the party appeared “sympathetic” to far-right activist Tommy Robinson. Watson said he feared British politics was “losing its compassion” as rival parties increasingly attempt to match Reform’s rhetoric.

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Watson’s parents are of the Jamaican Windrush-generation, with Watson having a professional background in social enterprise, youth work, and special educational needs. He also helped bring voters from London’s diverse communities into the party. Under his leadership, Reform’s Enfield branch encouraged the joining of members from Nigerian, Sikh, and Turkish backgrounds. A regular at party conferences, the father-of-three once had a sought-after seat at Nigel Farage’s table and has contributed articles to Reform’s magazine, The New Reformer.

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However, after Tommy Roinson’s “Unite the Kingdom” rally, which drew over 110,000 protesters to London and raised concerns of growing national division, Watson chose to leave the party. Earlier this year, he wrote to Reform’s former chair and current head of policy, Zia Yusuf, arguing that the UK should pay reparations to African-Caribbeans after Yusuf had rejected the proposal.

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He stated: “I know that down the track, there’s going to be other issues that I’m going to come into conflict [with Reform] on.

“The march in London recently, with Tommy Robinson, where the term Christian nationalism suddenly raised its head, where they were using Christian emblems to advance to me an ideology that is not Christian … I know that Nigel [Farage] himself has distanced himself from anything to do with the likes of Tommy Robinson, but I do know that there are still people within Reform who are quite sympathetic to his ideas.

“Whether it’s Nigel banging on about the [small] boats, or Robert Jenrick talking about Handsworth, [politicians] are stoking a fire. Some might be stoking it with a smaller stick – and that type of conversation, with the boats, the [asylum] hotels, I feel it’s doing more harm than good in terms of community relations.”

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Longtime Brexit supporter and conservative Christian Watson previously ran as a parliamentary candidate in Edmonton, north London, and for the London Assembly under Ukip before joining Reform. Conclusively, his religious convictions and belief in the benefits of migration and diversity led him to question the direction of UK politics. He went on to say: “Politics is losing its compassion as politicians try to out-Reform Reform and I no longer feel that this is compatible with my Christian faith.

“I believe migration has been good for this country and that, managed properly, still could be.

“I’m coming from a very strong, Christian, love thy neighbour sort of perspective, and what I want to say is going to feel different from Reform. If I sat as a chair, I would always be conscious of that, I would never feel free, and so I have left Reform and joined the Christian People’s Alliance.

“Reform has so much momentum at the moment, but leaving has allowed me to proclaim who I am without flinching. I don’t want to see a society where we weaponise our faith against Islam. We respect our Muslim brothers and sisters.”

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Reform UK has not yet commented on Watson’s departure.

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