Reform UK has pledged to restore Britain's Christian heritage if it is elected into government.
The party's new Home Affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf, who is a Muslim, has said Britain’s Christian values are at risk because of mass immigration of people from “low-trust societies”.
In an interview with The Times, before setting out his agenda in a speech in Dover on Monday, Yusuf said Reform UK would prevent churches being converted into mosques and illegal migrants would be deported.
A “patriotic curriculum” would be also introduced in schools that he said would put Christianity at its heart.
The vice president of Reform UK’s Christian Fellowship, Dan Barker, told Premier Christian News he agrees with Yusuf.
"I think most people would agree," he said. "If you asked the man in the street about Christian values, the public good, the social good that is Christianity, that has declined in recent decades. There’s been a vacuum that has been filled by other ideas, with other religions – or no religion - or some quite dangerous political ideologies.”
Barker added that he believes Yusuf is right to object to churches being converted into spaces for other religions.
“Some of these buildings have been the centre of our communities for hundreds of years," Barker said. "They're intrinsically linked to those communities, so for a church to fall into disrepair and then with very little control, to be converted into a mosque or some other Hindu temple, has to be stopped. There's got to be restrictive covenants to say these churches are only for Christian use.”
When asked whether Reform UK’s stance on immigration goes against Jesus’ teachings of welcoming the stranger, Barker said: “Jesus talked about nations and about the rule of law and authority. And what we're seeing here with illegal immigration is exactly the opposite of that. It's lawlessness, it's criminality.
“Christianity has taken a back seat for too long. It’s part of our heritage, it's part of our history, it’s so intrinsic to who we are as a country. We've got so much to be proud of, and so much of that is tied up with our Christian heritage. I think we need to be talking about it more often and in a more confident way. And I'm glad that's what Zia did today. He's started the conversation.”
However, Yusuf's comments have been met without a lot of backlash on social media. On X user commented: "What is Christian about sending people seeking asylum back to their persecutors! You are such a hypocrite!". Another said: "My Christian heritage is in tact. So what are you spouting about? What is it you’re reclaiming?"