"Last year's freshers' fair was a dismal time for Newcastle University's Conservative society, with just six new students showing any interest in joining at the start of the autumn term. But this year's event brought dozens of students showing up with renewed enthusiasm after the Tory students merged with the Reform UK students, shrugging off a rebuke from Conservative party headquarters to do so. Interest increased tenfold."
"The decision to merge provoked a phone call from the party hierarchy, unhappy at the approach. But the combined Newcastle group continues to attract Conservative MPs and luminaries to its pint and policy debates. Bateson said the merger was necessary to maintain a place for students on the political right, and warned: I think it's only a matter of time before Conservative societies go extinct at British universities and we may hasten the Tories' demise unapologetically, because they have let us down."
Conservative and Reform UK student groups merged at Newcastle University, reversing a collapse in recruitment from six freshers to dozens of members and increasing interest tenfold. The merger prompted a call from Conservative party headquarters but allowed the combined society to continue attracting Conservative MPs and luminaries to debates. Members such as Henry Bateson said the change preserved a place for right‑wing students, warned that Conservative societies risk extinction, and reported many peers shifting to Reform UK. Recent polling shows Reform overtaking the Conservatives among 18–24‑year‑olds, and York Conservatives lost members who formed a Reform society.
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