Farage eyes London votes as Labour figures defect

Nigel Farage has unveiled two senior Labour figures from London’s political scene as the latest defectors to Reform, as he makes a push for votes in the capital ahead of local elections.

- DAVID MADDOX

Mr Farage welcomed Sir Robin Wales, the controversial former Labour mayor of Newham, who was deselected in 2018, and the former council leader in Newham, Clive Furness, to Reform UK at a press conference in London. Mr Farage admitted that his party's “weakness” is a lack of “experience on the front line”.

Until now, the most prominent defectors have been right-wing Tories such as Robert Jenrick, Suella Braverman and Nadine Dorries.

Sir Robin said he was switching parties because Labour “has lost its moral compass” under Sir Keir Starmer. He claimed that the two main parties, Labour and the Conservatives, “have failed”, and denied that Reform is “racist”. Sir Robin has been appointed to be Reform's London director of local government, while Mr Furness will serve as his senior adviser and stand as Reform UK's candidate for mayor of Newham.