Reform UK leader Nigel Farage will cease writing a regular column for The Telegraph, the latest prominent right-wing voice to part ways with the newspaper since its acquisition by the German publisher Axel Springer. A dispute has emerged over the circumstances behind the departure, with sources differing on whether Farage resigned or Axel Springer decided not to renew his contract.
The Guardian understands that Nigel Farage's contract to write regularly for the title is ending. The column paid him roughly £4,000 a month, according to the register of MPs' financial interests. Sources familiar with the decision suggested that Axel Springer chose not to renew the arrangement. By contrast, sources close to Farage said the Reform UK leader submitted his resignation on Friday, objecting to the direction the newspaper was taking. In his Telegraph columns, Farage recently condemned Andy Burnham's first budget and called for scrapping benefits for foreigners, abolishing net zero targets, and slashing foreign aid. He previously urged readers to "vote Reform and help me help you get our country back".
The end of Farage's regular presence comes amid the scrapping of Liam Halligan's Sunday Telegraph column and reported negotiations for the departure of firmly right-wing columnist Allison Pearson. Alex Phillips, a former Brexit Party politician now at TalkTV, said the Telegraph was “a political bloodbath with some of the most talented leading commentators of our day brutally axed before the paper veers left”, adding that “the long slow communist takeover of Europe is currently on steroids”.
A Telegraph source said they were not able to comment on individual employment matters. The changes come as Axel Springer has set out plans for mass redundancies across the business, including the newsroom. Its sports and culture sections appear to have been hit hard. Axel Springer hopes to use the Telegraph to make inroads into the US market as a centre-right, pro-free speech challenger to the Wall Street Journal, a strategy that has left many staff confused so far. Telegraph Media Group's latest accounts showed a £4 million loss last year as a result of legal fees connected to its lengthy ownership saga and the revaluing of assets. Accounts of Telegraph Media Group Holdings also revealed an underlying pre-tax operating profit of about £48 million.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The Telegraph has historically been the main print platform for the British centre-right. Its move away from established Tory and Brexit-backing voices signals a distinct strategic pivot under German ownership.
- For Nigel Farage, the loss of a widely read broadsheet column reduces a key channel for his political messaging to a readership that includes Conservative voters and MPs.
- The dispute over who ended the column reflects a wider tussle for the soul of the British right, with Reform UK seeking to displace the Conservatives and the Telegraph navigating its place between them.
Background
The Telegraph was acquired by Axel Springer in 2024 after a protracted bidding process. The new owners have since installed new leadership, initiated cost-cutting, and signalled ambitions to grow the brand in the United States as a competitor to the Wall Street Journal.
Key Perspectives
Axel Springer sources: Suggested the contract was not renewed, consistent with broader strategy shifts.
Sources close to Farage: State that Farage resigned on Friday because he disliked the direction the Telegraph was taking.
Alex Phillips (former Brexit Party politician, TalkTV): Described the changes as "a political bloodbath with some of the most talented leading commentators of our day brutally axed before the paper veers left".
What to Watch
- Whether other high-profile columnists, particularly those with Reform or Brexit links, exit the newspaper.
- How the Telegraph's efforts to build a US audience interact with its diminishing stable of well-known British right-wing voices.
- Farage's next media move, given the centrality of print and broadcast to his political project.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 10 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedFarage's regular column for The Telegraph is to end.World news | The Guardian: “Nigel Farage’s regular column for the Telegraph to end.”
- SupportedThe departure has prompted a dispute over whether Farage resigned or Axel Springer chose not to renew his contract.World news | The Guardian: “There appears to be a dispute over the reasons behind the termination of the contract [...] Sources suggested that Axel Springer, the Telegraph’s new German owner, has decided not to renew it. However, sources close to Farage said the Reform leader submitted his resignation on Friday”
- SupportedAxel Springer has plans for mass redundancies across the business, including the newsroom.World news | The Guardian: “Axel Springer has set out plans for mass redundancies across the business, including the newsroom.”
- SupportedFarage is the latest prominent right-wing figure to leave the paper under its new ownership.World news | The Guardian: “Nigel Farage will no longer write a regular column for the Telegraph, becoming the latest prominent rightwing figure to leave the title’s roster under its new ownership.”
- Partly supportedThe column paid Farage roughly £4,000 a month.World news | The Guardian: “There was a dispute over the reasons behind the termination of the contract, which paid Farage about £4,000 a month, according to the register of MPs’ financial interests.”
- Partly supportedSources familiar with the decision suggested Axel Springer chose not to renew the arrangement.World news | The Guardian: “Sources suggested that Axel Springer, the Telegraph’s new German owner, has decided not to renew it.”
- SupportedSources close to Farage said he submitted his resignation on Friday because he objected to the paper's direction.World news | The Guardian: “Sources close to Farage said the Reform leader submitted his resignation on Friday, as he did not like the direction that the Telegraph was moving in.”
- SupportedFarage previously urged Telegraph readers to “vote Reform and help me help you get our country back”.World news | The Guardian: “Farage’s previous columns have urged Telegraph readers to “vote Reform and help me help you get our country back””
- SupportedAlex Phillips described the Telegraph as “a political bloodbath with some of the most talented leading commentators of our day brutally axed before the paper veers left”.World news | The Guardian: “Alex Phillips, a former Brexit party politician and current presenter on Rupert Murdoch’s TalkTV, said the Telegraph was “a political bloodbath with some of the most talented leading commentators of our day brutally axed before the paper veers left”.”
- SupportedAlex Phillips said “the long slow communist takeover of Europe is currently on steroids”.World news | The Guardian: ““Wake up,” she wrote. “The long slow communist takeover of Europe is currently on steroids.””
- SupportedTelegraph Media Group's latest accounts showed a £4 million loss last year linked to legal fees and the revaluing of assets.World news | The Guardian: “The Telegraph Media Group’s latest accounts showed it had slumped to a £4m loss last year as a result of legal fees connected to its lengthy ownership saga and the revaluing of assets.”
- SupportedTelegraph Media Group Holdings reported an underlying pre-tax operating profit of about £48 million.World news | The Guardian: “However, the accounts of Telegraph Media Group Holdings also revealed it had made an underlying pre-tax operating profit of about £48m.”