For more than a decade, Westminster has been obsessing about whether Nigel Farage will do a deal with the Tories. First, it was Ukip in 2015; then the Brexit party in 2019. Now, the question is whether some kind of pact should be struck by 2029. This age-old debate has been reopened today. First, the Financial Times claimed Farage has told donors that the two parties will come to an accord. Then, the Times reported that that senior figures within Reform want Robert Jenrick, the shadow justice secretary, to defect from the Tories. Farage has slapped down the first story and refused to comment on the second.

But there are certainly plenty of people in British politics who are keen to talk up both stories. Both Labour and the Liberal........

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