Matt Vickers, the Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party, grandly pronounces that the Tories might be willing to do a deal with Reform before the next General Election if the fortunes of his useless party do not improve.
The subtext of that, of course, is that if they do improve, then the Tories will do what they did under Boris and stick their noses in the air as they go it alone. In short, Reform is some kind of safety net for them.
No thanks. Reform has led the polls for a year and we have done that because we have a clear vision of where we are going.
The Tories, by contrast, have not so far produced a single original thought but have merely reiterated Reform policies which look popular.
There are many reasons to reject any electoral pact. First, there are still plenty of left-wingers and Remainers in the ranks of the Conservatives. What would they do but frustrate our very clear aims and objectives?
Why would we give such candidates any support at all? Why would we offer them positions in a future administration? The mere suggestion is daft.
I know the dark arts of the Tories. A pact with Reform would be a naked power grab - Ann Widdecombe
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Secondly, the Tories are an undisciplined rabble. Even now, there is talk of getting rid of Kemi Badenoch and replacing her with Robert Jenrick.
When did you ever hear anybody in Reform talk about ousting Nigel or briefing against Richard or denigrating David Bull? Those who do fall out with the Party, such as Habib and Lowe, simply leave.
They do not hang about fomenting trouble. Believe me, in the event of any pact, as soon as the Tories arrived at Westminster, they would be on manoeuvres to take over.
In other words, while Reform was trying to get the country right - a Herculean task - the Tories would be plotting and scheming and backbiting.
Thirdly, there just isn’t much talent there now. Mel Stride, Robert Jenrick and who else stand out? We face an almighty challenge in putting together a highly competent team, but when the May elections (in so much as we are allowed to have them) are over, that will be our first priority, and it will probably be at that point that the voters realise we offer something that is both different and impressive, which is what they are yearning for.
The brutal truth is that Badenoch is just not cutting the mustard.
Every time she makes a passable speech or moves a point in the polls, the Tory press proclaims that it is the beginning of the Tory fightback, but there is no sign of any resulting surge.
Reform membership continues to grow. We are ahead of both the Tories and Labour. We have a steady lead in the polls. Donors have started to come out of the woodwork. The trajectory is clearly up.
If the Tories were having half as much success, they would be pooh-poohing any talk of pacts. Well, sorry, Matt Vickers, but we have a programme to implement, and I can’t see your divided, fractious, stale party helping.