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Nigel Farage depicts his political party as a unique occurrence that has burst on to the global stage, its meteoric rise an exceptional epochal event. But this week, in every one of the continent's leading countries and from India and Thailand to the United States and Argentina, far-right, anti-immigrant, anti-globalization parties similar to his are also ahead in the public surveys.

During recent Czech voting, the conservative, pro-Putin populist a prominent figure overthrew prime minister Petr Fiala. A French political group, which has just brought down yet another France's leader, is leading the polls for both the presidential race and the legislature. In the German nation, the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) is currently the most popular party. Hungary’s Fidesz party, Slovakia's governing alliance and the Brothers of Italy are already in government, while the Austrian FPÖ, the Netherlands’ Freedom party (PVV) and Belgium’s Vlaams Belang – all hardline nationalists – are part of an international coalition of anti-internationalists, inspired by right-wing influencers such as a well-known figure, seeking to overthrow the global legal order, weaken human rights and undermine international collaboration.

The Populist Nationalist Surge

The populist nationalist surge reveals a recent undeniable reality that supporters of democracy overlook at our peril: an nationalist ideology – once thought defeated with the historic barrier – has supplanted economic liberalism as the leading belief system of our age, giving us a world of priorities: “America first”, “Indian focus”, “Chinese emphasis”, “Russian primacy”, “group priority” and often “my tribe first and only” regimes. It is this ethnic nationalism that helps explain why the world is now composed of 91 autocracies and only 88 democracies, and this ideology is the driver behind the breaches of global human rights standards not just by one nation in conflict but in almost every one of the world’s 59 cross-border conflicts and civil wars.

Root Causes Explained

It is important to grasp the underlying forces, widespread globally, that have fuelled this recent nationalist era. It starts with a broadly shared perception that a globalization that was open but not inclusive has been a free for all that has been unjust to all.

Over the past ten years, political figures have not only been slow to respond to the many people who feel left out and left behind, but also to the changing balance of world economic influence, transitioning from a unipolar world once dominated by the United States to a multipolar world of rival major nations, and from a system of international law to a power-based one. The ethnic nationalism that this has incited means free trade is giving way to protectionism. Where market forces used to drive politics, the politics of nationalism is now driving economic decisions, and already over a hundred nations are running protectionist strategies characterized by bringing production home and ally-focused trade and by bans on cross-border trade, investment and technology transfer, sinking global collaboration to its lowest ebb since 1945.

Optimism in Public Opinion

However, there is hope. The situation is not fixed, and even as it hardens we can find hope in the pragmatism of the world's population. In a recent survey for a prominent organization, of 36,000 people in dozens of nations we find a clear majority are less receptive to an exclusionary nationalism and more willing to support global teamwork than many of the officials who rule over them.

Globally there is, perhaps surprisingly, only a small group of staunch global cooperation opponents representing 16.5% of the world's people (even if 25% in today’s US) who either feel peaceful living between ethnic and religious groups is unattainable or have a win-lose perspective that if they or their nation do well, it has to be at the expense of others doing badly.

But there are an additional group at the opposite extreme, whom we might call dedicated globalists, who either still see cooperation across borders through open trade as a mutually beneficial arrangement, or are what an influential thinker calls “rooted cosmopolitans”.

Worldwide Public Position

Most people of the world's citizens are moderate in views: not isolated patriots, as “US priority” ideology would suggest, or fully global citizens. They are devoted to their country but don’t see the world as in a never-ending struggle between the “our side” and the “others”, opponents permanently set apart from each other in an unbridgeable divide.

Are most moderates prefer a duty-free or a responsible global community? Are they willing to accept responsibilities beyond their garden gate or community boundaries? Affirmative, under specific circumstances. A initial segment, about a fifth, will back aid efforts to relieve suffering and are prepared to act out of selflessness, backing disaster relief for affected areas. Those we might call “good cause” multilateralists feel the pain of others and have faith in something bigger than themselves.

A second group comprising a similar percentage are pragmatic multilateralists who want to know that any taxes paid for international development are used effectively. And there is a final category, roughly a fifth, personally motivated collaborators, who will endorse cooperation if they can see that it advantages them and their communities, whether it be through ensuring them basic necessities or safety and stability.

Building a Cooperative Majority

So a definite majority can be constructed not just for humanitarian aid if money is well spent but also for international measures to deal with global problems, like climate crisis and disease control, as long as this argument is presented on grounds of wise personal benefit, and if we emphasize the reciprocal benefits that benefit them and their own country. And thus for those who have long wondered whether we cooperate out of need or if we have a need to cooperate, the response is each.

This willingness to cooperate across borders shows how we can turn back the xenophobic tide: we can defeat today’s negative, inward-looking and often aggressive and authoritarian patriotic extremism that vilifies immigrants, outsiders and “different groups” as long as we advocate for a positive, globally engaged and welcoming national pride that responds to people’s desire to belong and connects to their everyday worries.

Tackling Key Issues

Although in-depth polls tell us that across the Western nations, unauthorized entry is currently the biggest national issue – and no one should doubt that it must promptly be managed effectively – the snapshots of opinion also tell us that the public are even more worried by what is happening in their personal circumstances and within their immediate neighborhoods. Recently, the UK Prime Minister gave an emotional speech about how what’s good about Britain can overcome what’s negative, doing so precisely because in most western countries, “broken” and “in decline” are the words people have for years most frequently used when asked about both our financial system and society.

But as the leader also reminded us, the extreme right is more interested in exploiting grievances than resolving issues. Nigel Farage praised a disastrous mini-budget as “an excellent fiscal policy” since 1986. But he would also enact a similar plan – what was planned – the largest reductions in public services. Reform’s plan to reduce public spending by £275bn would not repair struggling areas but damage them, turn citizen against citizen and destroy any sense of unity. Under a hard-right regime, you will not be able to afford to be ill, impaired, poor or at-risk. Every day from now on, and in every constituency, the party should be asked which hospital, which educational institution and which government service will be the first to be reduced or shut down.

Risks and Solutions

“Faragism” is neoliberalism at its most inhumane, more harmful even than monetary policy, and spiteful far beyond austerity. What the people are indicating all over the west is that they want their governments to rebuild our financial systems and our civic societies. “The party” and its global allies should be exposed day after day for policies that would devastate both. And for those of us who believe our best days could be ahead of us, we can go beyond pointing out Reform’s hypocrisy by setting out a argument for a better Britain that resonates not just to visionaries, but to realists, to self-interest, and to the daily kindness of the nation's citizens.