Nigel Farage could be rubbing his hands with glee at latest Elon Musk barb

OPINION

While world's richest man and X boss Elon Musk has been a great champion for freedom of speech, his latest broadside against Nigel Farage can be chalked up as something of a win by the Reform chief. Following Farage's immigration policy announcement this week, Musk reignited an earlier feud with the Reform leader, this time calling him "weak sauce who will do nothing" to curb immigration to the UK.

While Musk was instrumental in highlighting the grooming gangs scandal, more recently he has backed Tommy Robinson, someone Farage had distanced himself from. The fact remains that Farage and deputy Richard Tice are on a mission to make Reform a credible, election-winning party for next year's local, Scottish and Welsh elections, and crucially a general election slated for 2029.

The media mudslinging over Reform - with hackneyed accusations of racism - become harder to sustain if Farage and co are deemed too liberal for fringe opinion.

Reform's pitch is to be a party of law and nationhood. That is the ticket to win the centre ground and Middle Britain. The alternative is to consign themselves to the purist periphery, a million miles from winning power.

Musk is an ideological ally of Reform in many ways but, in attacking Farage and the latter's pragmatic and practical approach - geared to reading the public mood and designed to win power - the Tesla boss helps Farage put clear blue water between Reform and the extreme.

Farage's plan is working. Reform has been consistently top of national polls since April. The latest Find Out Now poll has Reform on a whopping 16 points ahead of Labour (up from 15). Clearly he is doing something right.

Farage's strategy of radicalism minus extremism is working. Reform is no darling of the Establishment press. But it is increasingly tough for the media to paint Reform as a danger when Labour and Tories alike are falling over themselves to ape Farage's tone and focus on migration.