Farage and Bardella prepare joint migration plan as Reform UK fights for relevance

At Reform UK's party congress in Birmingham, Farage and Bardella are expected to present a joint plan addressing cross-Channel migration. The two have been described as a "populist odd couple," their cooperation bringing together different political traditions around a shared anti-immigration agenda.

The move comes as Reform UK looks for ways to maintain its influence, with the party facing a challenge from Britain's new Labour Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who has held office for only a month. A recent poll suggests British voters were unimpressed by Burnham's handling of this summer's heatwave, drought and wildfires — his first major test in office.

Despite public dissatisfaction with the government, Farage and Reform UK have struggled to fully capitalize on it. The party leader has been portrayed as a politician "under siege," searching for a way to respond to Burnham's fast start and hold onto the underdog role in the fight for voter trust.

The joint proposal with Bardella could become one of Farage's attempts to regain the initiative, though observers note that cooperation between the two parties — each with different national contexts and interests — is unlikely to be straightforward.