The controversial approach would allow Reform to appoint figures from a dramatically wider experience pool, but also provokes explosive questions about parliamentary accountability and democratic norms. The news comes as Trump smears UK in Mark Zuckerberg tech-bro meetup: ‘Strange things are happening’.

Details of the radical thinking are revealed in an explosive interview with The Telegraph by Zia Yusuf, who has emerged as one of Reform’s most influential figures.

‘Galactic-level’ talent hunt begins

Mr Yusuf, a party official, said the search for potential Cabinet ministers was already under way, and suggested people with “galactic-level” talent were interested. He refused to give specifics.

He also threw his name in the ring to be Reform’s chancellor if the party wins the next election, arguing that his business background made him well placed to run the economy.

Reform’s annual conference in Birmingham takes place on Friday and Saturday and is built around the theme of “the next step”.

There is more media and business interest in the conference than ever, with the party leading significantly in the opinion polls. About one in three voters say they would vote for Reform now.

Challenge to convince voters

But Mr Farage and his senior colleagues have the challenge of convincing the electorate that they have a plan for government and an effective policy platform for changing the country.

Currently, Reform has no full shadow cabinet – unlike Labour and the Tories in opposition – creating uncertainty about who would lead departments if the party took office.

Mr Yusuf said the plan was to unveil a prospective Cabinet much closer to the election, meaning voters may have to wait until 2029 to learn the proposed team of Reform ministers.

Reform had only five MPs elected into the House of Commons last summer, picking up a sixth in a by-election. Two now no longer sit as Reform MPs.

Household names ‘coming forward’

Explaining the approach to creating a Cabinet-in-waiting, Mr Yusuf said: “The number of people who are coming forward saying that they want to help Reform, either in the background or potentially front line, is growing all of the time.

“Some of these people are household names. I’m not going to give you them, because I’m not going to betray confidences. But these are incredible – this is galactic-level talent that we’d be very proud to have serving our country.

“As Nigel has said, one of our diagnoses for why talent density is so poor is because inevitably you have a situation where our health secretary is also, for example, an MP.

“We don’t think it makes sense necessarily for the minister of defence to also be doing constituency surgeries about the chlorine level in the local swimming pool.

“Now, that’s an important issue, but I don’t think one person is necessarily best suited to do both of those things. So a lot of our Cabinet ministers, a lot of the people Nigel puts in his Cabinet – not all of them, but a lot of them – will not be MPs.”

Asked whether they would therefore be Lords, Mr Yusuf said: “That is the most likely scenario, yes.”

Echoes of American system

The approach has echoes of the American system, where the US president, once elected and in post, is free to appoint whomever they want to head departments in the executive branch, providing the US Senate approves the choices.

In Donald Trump‘s two terms, he has appointed military generals, TV hosts, former congressmen, one-time political rivals and prominent supporters to cabinet positions.

Sir Keir Starmer is under growing pressure to name peers for Reform when the next Lords appointments are recommended.

The Guardian has reported that plans are being made for a new set of Labour peers to be unveiled imminently. Reform, despite its polling position, has no members in the Lords at present.