Christian Groups 'Annoyed' At Reform Conference Held In Church House
27 February 2026
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Catherine WyattBBC spiritual affairs
A number of Christian groups have actually spoken of their "shock and dissatisfaction" that Reform UK was permitted to use the Church of England's headquarters for an interview.
They said the celebration's migration policies were opposed to Church beliefs and mentors.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage announced his brand-new leading group at a press conference in the Assembly Hall at Church House in Westminster last week.
The celebration said the criticism was "little more than an inexpensive political stunt".
Church House, whose lettings policy says it does not accept bookings from groups which "promote racial prejudice", stated it operated on an industrial basis, and was not part of the Church of England.
Christians for a stated it was "annoyed" that Church House had allowed Reform UK to utilize the location, and that it created the impression the Church provided its "blessing" to "hostile policies and dissentious rhetoric".
Other organisations and parties - including the Conservatives and Labour - have formerly used the location, as have Reform multiple times.
But it was their most current event, hosted inside the chamber where the Church of England had just the week before held its national assembly, General Synod, which caused the greatest stir.
Christians from the groups Better Story, Christians Against the Far Right and Christians for a Welcoming Britain, have composed to Church House to grumble.
In his letter, Reverend Keith Brindle, a Church of England priest in Frome, and organizer of Christians Against the Far Right, wrote that the place had actually been "utilized as an ethical backdrop for policies that oppose the very heart of the Christian faith".
He composed: "Church House has actually provided a veneer of spiritual legitimacy to Reform's anti-migrant and anti-Muslim politics, and their cynical scapegoating.
"As fans of Jesus, we must decline to let the architecture of our faith be used to back the dehumanisation of our neighbours.
"The Church should be a sanctuary for the displaced, not a platform for their expulsion."
At Reform UK's event, Zia Yusuf was revealed as the celebration's lead on home affairs, with a concentrate on cutting legal and prohibited migration.
The party has actually because revealed plans to create a "UK Deportation Command", a brand-new company to bring out mass deportations of prohibited migrants.
It was not the very first time Church House had actually come under fire for its use by external organisations.
In late 2020, the venue hosted two boxing fights sponsored by online gaming firm 32Red.
At the time, critics argued that betting dependency was damaging, and need to not be seen to be promoted by the Church.
Campaigners have also formerly opposed Royal United Services Institute (Rusi)'s annual Land Warfare Conference being hosted at the place.
In a declaration to the BBC, Church House said it accepted "bookings from organisations that fulfill our ethical lettings policy, based on schedule".
The policy mentions that bookings might be denied if "the hirer promotes views which are anathema to the teachings of the Church of England, as may be affirmed by its Synodical or Episcopal declaration from time to time, such as groups which promote racial prejudice".
A Reform UK representative told the BBC: "This is little more than a low-cost political stunt by a group that is entirely out of touch with the British public.
"Poll after poll shows migration is a leading issue for citizens. Attempting to shut down dispute on a subject close to citizens' hearts is both un-Christian and authoritarian."