'Nakedly self-interested'

Fareham constituents on Braverman's defection

- Priya Bharadia

For Jamie Jewell, the owner of the Golden Lion, there had been radio silence from his local MP, Suella Braverman - until Monday afternoon.

In January 2025, the MP for Fareham and Waterlooville had visited the pub. She offered to help the owners with removing a protected tree that was damaging the property, and posted photos with the staff on her Facebook and for local media.

Jewell has not heard back from her since. "I've sent emails saying 'we need support here', and never received a response," Jewell said. "Not even an acknowledgement."

A year later, at a Reform UK event in London this week, Braverman made a surprise appearance, announcing her defection from the Conservative party to Reform UK. "I feel as if I've come home," she told the audience.

Jewell said he had no interest in Braverman's future endeavours. "I don't want her in my pub. She's not helped us at all."

Braverman - who was Rishi Sunak's home secretary from 2022-23 and gained a reputation as an opportunistic political operator with a keen sense of how to get traction on the right - has been MP here since 2015.

Fareham is a market town that lies northwest of Portsmouth harbour, in Hampshire. The town has been a Conservative stronghold since its creation in 1885. The constituency was reformed into Gosport and Fareham in 1950, and again into Fareham and Waterlooville in 2024, when Braverman last won her seat.