James Orr

Credentialsย 

Background

Dr James Orr is an associate professor of philosophy of religion at the University of Cambridge4โ€œDr James Orr,โ€ Cambridge University Faculty of Divinity, accessed 08.01.2025. Archived December 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/vHWQr and head of policy for the right-wing political party Reform UK.5Poppy Coburn. โ€œReformโ€™s new โ€˜kingmakerโ€™: The theologian friend of JD Vance,โ€ The Telegraph, October 19, 2025. Archived November 4, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Yng1f

Orr is a close friend of 47th U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, and has been described as the vice presidentโ€™s โ€œphilosopher kingโ€ and โ€œBritish Sherpaโ€. He became friends with Vance in 2019 after Vanceโ€™s conversion to Catholicism.6Peter Snowdon and Anne McElvoy. โ€œMeet JD Vanceโ€™s English philosopher king,โ€ Politico, September 19, 2024. Archived September 19, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/re4Uu

Orr has expressed anti-climate positions,7Joey Groestern โ€œFarage and Vance โ€˜Sherpaโ€™ Attacked โ€˜Ukraine Brainโ€™ at Oil-Backed Festival,โ€ DeSmog, August 7, 2025. expressed admiration for the Heritage Foundation and Project 2025, the 900-page authoritarian policy blueprint for Donald Trumpโ€™s second term,8Adam Barnett. โ€œFarage to Share Stage with Architects of Trumpโ€™s Anti-Climate Agenda,โ€ DeSmog, August 27, 2025. and has called Russiaโ€™s invasion of Ukraine a โ€œregional Slavic conflictโ€ that he doesnโ€™t โ€œcare very much about.โ€9Zoltรกn Kottรกsz. โ€œโ€œNo civilisation has invited invaders in and put them up in four-star hotelsโ€: Professor James Orr,โ€ European Conservative, August 13, 2025. Archived September 18, 2025. Archive URL:ย https://archive.is/ozdmS

He holds multiple roles at right-wing and Christian think tanks that have links to radical right-wing politicians and commentators across Europe, and many of which espouse anti-climate, pro-fossil fuel positions.ย 

He is the UK chairman of the the Edmund Burke Foundation, a conservative think tank based in Washington D.C.,10Adam Barnett. โ€œFarage to Share Stage with Architects of Trumpโ€™s Anti-Climate Agenda,โ€ DeSmog, August 27, 2025. the organising force behind the National Conservatism conferences.11โ€œEdmund Burke Foundation people,โ€ National Conservatism, accessed January 8, 2026. Archived โ€ฆ Archive URL: https://archive.ph/RnW1w He is also an advisory board member at the climate denial network the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship, which is fronted by Jordan Peterson, run by the co-owners of GB News, and features climate deniers Bjorn Lomborg and Tony Abbott among its advisory board.12Advisory Board,โ€ Alliance for Responsible Citizenship, accessed January 8, 2026. Archived December 28, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/MqOB4

Orr served as the chair of the Centre for a Better Britain (CFABB), a right-wing think tank closely tied to Reform UK, founded by its donors, until leaving in October 2025 to become Nigel Farageโ€™s senior advisor.13Poppy Coburn. โ€œReformโ€™s new โ€˜kingmakerโ€™: The theologian friend of JD Vance,โ€ The Telegraph, October 19, 2025. Archived November 4, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Yng1f

CFABB formally launched in September 2025 to โ€œsupport Reform with policy development, briefing and rebuttalโ€.14Anna Gross. โ€œReform UK figures plan Maga-style think-tank to build policy and attract US donors,โ€ The Financial Times, March 29, 2025. Archived March 29, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/aMrCx The think tank claims to be seeking funding from allies of 47th U.S. President Donald Trump, tech interests, and โ€œreligious conservativesโ€.15Adam Barnett and Sam Bright. โ€œNew Reform Think Tank โ€˜Resolute 1850โ€™ Run by Mining Magnates,โ€ DeSmog, April 10, 2025. By September 2025, the think tank had reportedly raised over ยฃ1 million.16Anna Gross. โ€œReform-linked think-tank secures funding pledges worth ยฃ1mn,โ€ The Financial Times, April 11, 2025. Archived April 11, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ahycY Documents leaked to The Times in June 2025 detailed the think tankโ€™s intention to raise ยฃ25 million by 2029 from UK and U.S. sources, including pro-Trump donors.17Gabriel Pogrund. โ€œThe Nigel Farage backers chasing Maga millions and a Jenrick pact,โ€ The Times, June 21, 2025. Archived June 22, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/j6NKB

Orr is also a board director at the Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation, a right-wing think tank founded following the death of Conservative British philosopher Roger Scruton in 2020. The think tank has hosted events featuring prominent right-wing commentators and politicians including Peter Thiel,18โ€œ’The Diversity Myth’ by Peter Thiel โ€” Memorial Lecture,โ€ Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation, accessed January 8, 2025. Archived October 25, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/qhKwy Ron DeSantis and Chris Wright,19โ€œ2022 Common Sense Society Conference & Gala โ€” The Sir Roger Scruton Prize Award Ceremony,โ€ Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation, accessed January 8, 2026. Archived August 31, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/LIFp2 Douglas Murray,20โ€œ‘The Life and Legacy of Sir Roger Scruton’ by Douglas Murray โ€” Memorial Lecture,โ€ Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation, accessed January 8, 2026. Archived October 23, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/bsH9V Rupert Lowe, Danny Kruger,21โ€œNow & England,โ€ Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation, accessed January 8, 2026. Archived November 1, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/1yfMp and Robert Jenrick.22โ€œThe Future of Building Beautiful: an Interview with the Rt Hon Robert Jenrick,โ€ Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation, accessed January 8, 2026. Archived November 5, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/pYFUl Some of its events have been co-organised with other Conservative think tanks, including the Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC), a think tank linked to Viktor Orbanโ€™s Hungarian government and financed in part through shares in the countryโ€™s national oil company.

Orr was a board member of the Dubai-based Prosperity Institute in 2025,23โ€œDr James Orr,โ€ Prosperity Institute. Archived August 10, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.is/8s2GV a think tank whose parent company, the Legatum Group, co-founded the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship and GB News along with Paul Marshall.

Orr believes that the UK should emulate the politics of Orbรกnโ€™s Hungary. Speaking at the MCC summer festival in 2025, he described Orbรกnโ€™s autocratic government as a โ€œcounterexample to the ideology in my own country that rejects national pride and heritageโ€.24Joey Grostern. โ€œFarage and Vance โ€˜Sherpaโ€™ Attacked โ€˜Ukraine Brainโ€™ at Oil-Backed Festival,โ€ DeSmog, August 7, 2025.

In reference to modern Britain, he told PoliticsHome:

โ€œThis new nation thatโ€™s emerging is really no nation at all. Itโ€™s almost a laboratory for hyper-liberalism, hyper-progressivism, engaging in the endgame of this disastrous experiment that has been multi-culturalismโ€.25Noah Vickers. โ€œJames Orr: โ€˜This New Nation Thatโ€™s Emerging Is Really No Nation At All,โ€™โ€™ PoliticsHome, September 4, 2025. Archived September 13, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.is/BlLyB

Independent of his think tank affiliations, Orr has also made statements criticising climate action and calling for further fossil fuel extraction, including labelling net zero โ€œrecklessโ€.26James Orr. โ€œThe reckless insanity of energy policy under both the Tories and Labour since 2004 has turned Britain into an international laughing-stock. Energy independence is the only policy goal we should be pursuing.,โ€ X post by user @jtworr, January 4, 2025. Archived .png on file at DeSmog. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ZnDlJ

On abortion, a profile in The Times said โ€œhe does not think abortion should be allowed, at any stage of foetal development, even in pregnancies resulting from rape.โ€27Robert Crampton. โ€œJames Orr: JD Vance is just a normal guy who likes his beers,โ€ The Times, August 15, 2025. Archived November 27, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Yng1f

Stance on Climate Change

Personal views

Across interviews, speeches and posts on his social media accounts, Orr has consistently argued for net zero to be abandoned in the UK and fossil fuel extraction maximised.

November 13, 2025

Orr posted on X saying โ€œReform will deliver what the Uniparty did not: cheap, reliable, abundant energy for the British people.โ€ Reform UKโ€™s energy policy is to scrap net zero, maximise fossil fuel extraction from the North Sea, and restart coal mining in the UK.28James Orr. โ€œExtraordinary to watch Net Zero unravel in the place that once preached it most zealously. Brexit means we no longer need permission from a Potemkin Parliament to escape it. Reform will deliver what the Uniparty did not: cheap, reliable, abundant energy for the British people.,โ€ X post by user @jtworr, November 13, 2025. Archived .png on file at DeSmog. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/axuji

August 31, 2025

Orr reposted a statement from Reform UK leader Nigel Farage on X which said that โ€œReform would free usโ€ from the โ€œTory Party inflicted the cost-of-living nightmare of Net Zero,โ€ by extracting more fossil fuels from the North Sea.ย 

Farageโ€™s post criticised Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenochโ€™s claim that her party would expand North Sea oil and gas production if they were in power, with Farage adding โ€œDonโ€™t believe a word they say about anything.โ€29James Orr. โ€œThe Tory Party inflicted the cost-of-living nightmare of Net Zero on Britain. Labour is doubling down on it. Reform will free us from it.,โ€ X post by user @jtworr, August 31, 2025. Archived .png on file at DeSmog. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/HPHN3

August 13, 2025

Orr was interviewed in the European Conservative, a news outlet indirectly funded by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbรกnโ€™s government,30Lili Rutai. โ€œHungary’s government is funding European publications. But have they had much success?,โ€ Euronews, September 15, 2023. Archived December 20, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/16ygB where he attacked European governments over their commitment to net zero, labelling it โ€œfiscal suicideโ€ and an example of โ€œcrazy energy policies.โ€ He also suggested that if Reform UK were to win a general election, it โ€œwould end the economic catastrophe of net zeroโ€ which would โ€œalone will give the country an enormous kick in terms of productivity.โ€ย 

When asked about Russiaโ€™s full scale invasion of Ukraine he labelled it a โ€œregional slavic conflict,โ€ adding that โ€œit is a conflict happening in the world that I donโ€™t care very much about.โ€ย 

March 3, 2025

In a post on X, Orr called the UKโ€™s aim to reach net zero emissions by 2050 โ€œeconomic suicide,โ€ making the claim that the โ€œimpact on global emission will be zero,โ€ continuing: โ€œwe are governed by clowns.โ€31James Orr. โ€œBritain is committing economic suicide to achieve Net Zero. In the unlikely event we do achieve it, the impact on global emissions will be zero. The evidence that others will be inspired to follow our example? Also zero. We are governed by clowns.,โ€ X post by user @jtworr, March 3, 2025. Archived .png on file at DeSmog. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/TwK8B

February 12-13, 2025

In a discussion about energy policy in an X thread, Orr made pro-fracking statements in response to a graph showing relative energy prices in the UK and U.S. between the mid-1990 and 2020s, arguing that the UK would have enjoyed lower prices because โ€œtapping our shale gas reserves would have mitigated the spikes.โ€32James Orr. โ€œI defer to your cousinโ€™s expertise. The CCA 2008 was a major factor in the price increases, though not the only one. Tapping our shale gas reserves would have mitigated the spikes, but yes not as dramatically as Barnett Shale did for US prices.,โ€ X post by user @jtworr, February 13, 2025. Archived .png on file at DeSmog. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/KlS9z

He added:

โ€œIn that same period we could have enjoyed a shale gas revolution of our own comparable in its impact on domestic electricity prices and carbon emissions to that in the US.โ€33James Orr. โ€œIn that same period we could have enjoyed a shale gas revolution of our own comparable in its impact on domestic electricity prices and carbon emissions to that in the US.,โ€ X post by user @jtworr, February 12, 2025. Archived .png on file at DeSmog. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/lRV5r

Key Quotes

September 5-6, 2025

James Orr spoke at Reform UKโ€™s annual conference alongside Zia Yusuf, Reformโ€™s head of policy and head of its DOGE unit, in a talk titled: โ€œIs the country really ready for Reform?โ€.34Sam Bright. โ€œClimate Deniers to Converge on Reform Conference,โ€ DeSmog, September 3, 2025.ย 

During the talk, Orr reportedly advised Reform to adopt Trump-style approaches to immigration, including the formation of a UK version of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and the creation of a UK equivalent of Project 2025, the radical right-wing blueprint for Trumpโ€™s second term created by the Heritage Foundation.35Olly Haynes. โ€œHow Reform UK Is Importing Conspiracy-Fuelled MAGA Politics to the UK,โ€ Byline Times, September 9, 2025. Archived September 15, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/hNck8

โ€‹โ€‹August 31 โ€“ September 2, 2025

Orr accused the UK of adopting a โ€œnaive and dangerousโ€ approach to Russiaโ€™s invasion of Ukraine at MCC Feszt, a festival in Hungary organised by the oil-funded think tank Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC).36Joey Grostern. โ€œFarage and Vance โ€˜Sherpaโ€™ Attacked โ€˜Ukraine Brainโ€™ at Oil-Backed Festival,โ€ DeSmog, August 7, 2025.

Orr accused politicians of failing to โ€œreflect upon this crisis, this problem, this conflict, on its own termsโ€.

He claimed they have a โ€œpeculiar psychological conditionโ€ โ€“ which he labelled โ€œUkraine brainโ€ โ€“ that means they are only able to understand the Russia-Ukraine war โ€œthrough the lensโ€ of the Second World War.

He instead praised Hungaryโ€™s approach, which has seen the country systematically block and delay EU military aid packages to Ukraine and sanctions on Russian oligarchs.

January 4, 2025

James Orr reposted a claim from prominent Danish climate denier Bjorn Lomborg which suggested that UK energy prices are due to climate policies rather than fluctuations in the price of gas.37James Orr. โ€œThe reckless insanity of energy policy under both the Tories and Labour since 2004 has turned Britain into an international laughing-stock. Energy independence is the only policy goal we should be pursuing,โ€ Post on X by @jwtorr, January 4, 2025. Archived .png on file at DeSmog.

Orr added:ย 

โ€œThe reckless insanity of energy policy under both the Tories and Labour since 2004 has turned Britain into an international laughing-stock. Energy independence is the only policy goal we should be pursuingโ€.ย 

Key Actions

February 17, 2026

Orr was appointed as Reform UKโ€™s Head of Policy.38Noah Keate. โ€œNigel Farage gives JD Vance ally top policy role,โ€ Politico, February 18, 2025. Archived February 18, 2026. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

October 19, 2025

Orr was appointed as senior advisor to Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, leaving his position at the Centre for a Better Britain.39Poppy Coburn. โ€œReformโ€™s new โ€˜kingmakerโ€™: The theologian friend of JD Vance,โ€ The Telegraph, October 19, 2025. Archived November 4, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Yng1f

A report in The Telegraph wrote that his role โ€œwill be responsible for building networks of elite defectors from academia, business and law, to create what he says will be a โ€˜party of second chancesโ€™.โ€40Poppy Coburn. โ€œReformโ€™s new โ€˜kingmakerโ€™: The theologian friend of JD Vance,โ€ The Telegraph, October 19, 2025. Archived November 4, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Yng1f

August 2025

Orr hosted 47th U.S. Vice President JD Vance at his home in Cambridgeshire,41Poppy Coburn. โ€œReformโ€™s new โ€˜kingmakerโ€™: The theologian friend of JD Vance,โ€ The Telegraph, October 19, 2025. Archived November 4, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Yng1f alongside then-Conservative MP Danny Kruger, who defected to Reform UK in September 2025,42Jennifer McKiernan. โ€œTory MP and shadow minister Danny Kruger defects to Reform,โ€ BBC News, September 15, 2025. Archived September 15, 2025. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and reality TV star Thomas Skinner.43Matt Simpson. โ€œInside JD Vance Cotswolds barbecue with The Apprentice star,โ€ Oxford Mail, August 13, 2025. Archived August 13, 2025. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Affiliationsย 

  • 47th U.S. Vice President JD Vance โ€“ย friend and mentor.ย 
  • Reform UK โ€“ย senior policy advisor to Nigel Farage.
  • Alliance for Responsible Citizenship โ€“ย board member.
  • Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation โ€“ย board member.
  • Edmund Burke Foundation โ€“ย UK chairman.
  • Centre for a Better Britain โ€“ย co-founder and former director.ย 
  • Prosperity Institute (formerly Legatum Institute) โ€“ย former board member.ย 
  • Mathias Corvinus Collegium โ€“ speaker at MCC Feszt 2025. MCC has also co-organised events with the Edmund Burke Foundation and Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation.ย 

Social media

X โ€“ย @jtworr

Instagram โ€“ย @jtworr

YouTube โ€“ @James-TW-Orr

Publications

Other resources

โ€œJames Orr,โ€ Wikipedia entry.ย 

Image credit: Wikimedia commons.

Resources

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