Tory MP Nick Fletcher suggests voters back Reform UK in mate Lee Anderson’s seat
Don Valley MP Nick Fletcher was told off by the Chief Whip after he endorsed Tory-turned-Reform MP Lee Anderson as the ’greatest champion’ for Ashfield and said he needs to be back in Westminster after the election.
Rishi Sunak is facing calls to withdraw the whip from a Tory MP who suggested people should vote Reform UK in his mate Lee Anderson’s seat at the next general election.
Despite the Conservatives being expected to field their own candidate in Ashfield, Nick Fletcher said the area had its "greatest champion" in Mr Anderson. But he was swiftly ticked off by Tory Chief Whip Simon Hart and forced to tweet that "of course I want to see a Conservative majority Government returned at the next election with as many Conservative MPs as possible".
Mr Anderson, a former Tory Deputy Chairman, defected to Reform UK last month after he was stripped of the Conservative whip. He refused to apologise after suggesting the London Mayor Sadiq Khan was being controlled by "Islamists" and had "given our capital city away to his mates".
Today, Mr Anderson revealed he will not be campaigning in certain Conservative-held constituencies due to his friendship with current MPs. They included the Don Valley MP Mr Fletcher, alongside Mansfield MP Ben Bradley, Bassetlaw MP Brendan Clarke-Smith, and Dudley North MP Marco Longhi.
He said: "These people are my friends and the ones that reached out to me last month. They will always be my friends and because of this I will not campaign against them in their parliamentary seats. Friendship means more to me. Every other seat is fair game."
Posting on Twitter /X in response, Mr Fletcher said he could understand the circumstances why Mr Anderson joined Reform UK. He added: "Ashfield has its greatest champion and I hope they appreciate what he has done for his home town and his country at the next election.
"I hope my constituents see that a vote for me in Doncaster is also the right thing to do. I am a lone voice in Parliament shouting up for Doncaster. We both need to be back in Westminster along with Ben Bradley, Brendan Clarke-Smith and Marco Longhi."
After being spoken to by the Chief Whip, Mr Fletcher then tweeted: "For the avoidance of any doubt of course I want to see a Conservative majority Government returned at the next election with as many Conservative MPs as possible. Lee is a personal friend but we can’t risk the damage a Labour Government would do to our country. Just look at what the Labour Council has done to Doncaster."
Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper said: "It seems even Conservative MPs don’t want the Conservatives to win. Voters are sick to the back teeth of this never-ending circus of infighting. Rishi Sunak needs to find his backbone and kick Nick Fletcher out of the Conservative Party. Failure to do so would show yet again that he’s too weak to control his party let alone govern the country."
A Labour spokeswoman added: “The fact a Conservative MP is urging voters to back Reform at the general election demonstrates just how out of control, divided and ungovernable the Tories have become under a weak Prime Minister.
“Rishi Sunak’s failure to take action is further proof that - after 14 years of Tory chaos - the government are clinging on to the hope that a grubby, last-ditch deal with Reform will save them: yet again putting the needs of the Tory party before the good of the country. If the Tories do not remove the whip from Nick Fletcher for endorsing Reform, then they have given up on governing altogether.”
A Reform UK spokesman said: "Lee Anderson made it clear from the day he joined Reform UK that he would not personally campaign against a handful of his close friends.
"The party respects this decision and it shows Lee’s loyalty to his friends, which goes beyond politics. Reform will be standing in these constituencies and will be fighting the Conservatives across the board in England, Wales and Scotland. The Tories have betrayed the country by failing to control our borders and allowing our public services to crumble. We will punish them at the general election."
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
