Former home secretary Suella Braverman has left the Conservative Party to join Reform UK, becoming the latest high profile figure from the party’s right wing to defect to Nigel Farage’s movement.
Her decision comes less than two weeks after former shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick also crossed the floor. With Mrs Braverman’s arrival, Reform now has eight MPs in the House of Commons, four of whom have defected from the Conservatives since the general election.
Speaking at a Reform UK press conference, Mrs Braverman said she felt she had “come home” after joining the party. She argued that the country was in serious decline, pointing to high levels of immigration, strained public services and concerns about public safety. She also claimed that young people were leaving Britain in search of better opportunities abroad and said the nation appeared weakened internationally.
She told supporters that the country faced a major choice between continuing what she described as decline or seeking renewal and strength.
Following her remarks, Mrs Braverman and Mr Farage embraced on stage. The Reform leader said her move was long overdue and highlighted her experience at the highest levels of government, including her time as home secretary.
Mrs Braverman confirmed she would sit as a Reform MP with immediate effect and suggested she would not trigger a by election in her constituency. She acknowledged that some Conservative supporters in Fareham and Waterlooville would be disappointed by her decision and said she planned to set out her reasons in more detail later in the day.
She also revealed that she had urged former prime minister Rishi Sunak to withdraw the UK from the European Convention on Human Rights but said she had been prevented from doing so and was later dismissed from her Cabinet role.
Criticising her former party, Mrs Braverman said Conservative ministers had resisted her proposals, arguing they were too divisive or risky. She claimed that party leaders had failed to act when they had the power to do so and had not delivered on commitments to voters.
She reserved particular praise for Mr Farage, describing him as the only politician who had been consistently outspoken about the state of the country. She said he had continued to raise concerns about immigration despite criticism and had been vindicated by public support.
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