Reform UK chairman Zia Yusuf has reversed his decision to quit the party, saying “the mission is too important” and that he “cannot let people down”.
Instead, he said he will return in a new role, heading up an Elon Musk-inspired “UK DOGE team”.
In a statement on X, he said: “Over the last 24 hours I have received a huge number of lovely and heartfelt messages from people who have expressed their dismay at my resignation, urging me to reconsider.
“After 11 months of working as a volunteer to build a political party from scratch, with barely a single day off, my tweet was a decision born of exhaustion.”
He added: “I know the mission is too important and I cannot let people down.
“So, I will be continuing my work with Reform, my commitment redoubled.”
Mr Yusuf said he would be returning in a new role, seemingly focusing on cuts and efficiency within government.
He claimed he would “fight for taxpayers,” as well as work on party policy and represent it in the media.
“I will continue to give all my time to the most important project of my life, getting a Reform government elected with Nigel as Prime Minister,” Mr Yusuf added.
Only two days prior, Mr Yusuf dramatically handed in his resignation.
He claimed he no longer thought getting a Reform government elected was a “good use of my time”.
In response to the latest news, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said he was “delighted”.
What is DOGE?
DOGE is a meme-coin inspired creation of Musk’s, standing for the Department of Government Efficiency.
It is the latest right-wing US import into British politics.
Before his public fallout with Donald Trump, Musk claimed his focus was saving taxpayers’ money by locating wasteful spending within government and cutting it.
However, opposition politicians questioned the impact of his efforts and how much he actually saved.
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