Tory MP quits and backs Reform to switch her in hammer blow to Rishi Sunak

A departing Tory MP has dealt a hammer blow to Rishi Sunak by endorsing Reform UK to win her seat.

Lucy Allan gave her backing to Alan Adams, who is standing for the rival party in Telford. Tory HQ swiftly suspended her – but Ms Allan said she had resigned to support Mr Adams rather than Conservative Hannah Campbell.

She said: “I have resigned from the Conservative Party to support Alan Adams to be Telford’s next MP. I have known Alan for many years and he is genuinely the best person for the job.

“I want the best for Telford and I can’t just let the Labour candidate have a walkover.” She won the seat in 2019 with a majority of 10,941, but in 2017 the Conservatives won by just 720 – and she first won the seat in 2015 with a majority of 730.

Ms Allan said: “Alan is not in it for personal advantage, power, or control over people. Alan’s motivation for standing for election is profoundly honourable. He will be honest with Telford and put Telford first.”

A Conservative Party spokesman said: “Lucy Allan has been suspended from the party with immediate effect. The people of Telford now have the chance to vote for a dedicated and hardworking new candidate who will put Telford first.

“A vote for Reform is a vote for Keir Starmer.”

A Reform spokesman said: “Of course we are absolutely delighted that she is backing our candidate in Telford. She, like many Conservatives, feels that the Reform party represents traditional centre-right values and priorities in a way that the Conservative Party has long forgotten.”

Tory Veterans Minister Johnny Mercer tried to put a brave face on it after a rough few days for the PM. He said: “It’s not good news – but it doesn’t mean the wheels are coming off the campaign.

“I think any campaign is difficult. I think that any political party is a broad church and you’re going to have people within that organisation at that time unhappy with aspects of what’s going on. That’s completely normal.

“It’s disappointing. I like Lucy, but ultimately it is true that if you vote for Reform, you’re going to see Keir Starmer in Downing Street, and that doesn’t have any sort of intellectual sense about it if you want to vote for any of the Reform policies. So a vote for Reform is a vote for Keir Starmer.”