Ex-Tory finance minister defects to Farage’s Reform UK

Former UK Conservative minister Nadhim Zahawi announced today he had defected to Nigel Farage’s hard-right Reform UK, the latest and highest profile switch by an ex-Tory MP to the anti-immigration party.

Iraq-born Zahawi, who served briefly as finance minister in 2022 and also as chairman of the centre-right Conservatives, said Britain was “broken” and “really does need Nigel Farage as prime minister”.

“I am inspired by his willingness to say difficult truths rather than hide behind a comfortable lie,” he told a news conference attended by both men.

Farage’s upstart Reform — founded in 2021 from the ashes of his Brexit Party — has been leading by double-digit figures in the polls for the past year and won the most number of seats at last year’s local elections in England.

That has prompted predictions the fledgling party could seize power from the ruling centre-left Labour at the next general election, due by August 2029. The party is also hoping to make serious gains in fresh local elections slated for May.

Zahawi, who was sacked as Tory chairman in January 2023 after a scandal about his tax affairs, is just the latest of about 20 ex-Conservative lawmakers to switch to Reform in recent years.

A Conservative spokesman said Reform was “fast becoming the party of has-been politicians looking for their next gravy train”.

The statement noted 58-year-old Zahawi, a former refugee who came to Britain as a child speaking no English, had previously said on social media he would be “frightened to live in a country” run by Farage, with one of his other past posts branding the Reform leader racist.

Farage has also been critical of Zahawi previously, but insisted Monday he had long been “a fan” of the former businessman, who co-founded the polling company YouGov before entering politics.

In the wide-ranging press conference, Farage also reiterated his opposition to Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s bid to reset ties with the European Union.

Reports suggest Brussels wants a clause inserted in any deal for greater UK-EU dynamic alignment to prevent Farage ripping up the pact if he wins power.

Farage said any such clause would be “treacherous” and not in “the national interest”, while arguing again that “the tragedy of Brexit is we didn’t do it”.

“We never, ever took the opportunity or the potential advantage of moving away” from the EU’s single market, he added.

The UK left the EU in full in January 2021, after years of political wrangling since the divisive 2016 referendum to split from the bloc.

Brexit saw the UK withdraw from the European single market and customs union, while free movement between member states and the jurisdiction of European courts ended.

But a deal between London and Brussels maintained largely tariff-free trade with its remaining 27 members, while Starmer has said he would like more sector-by-sector alignment with the single market.