Rishi Sunak has rejected calls to remove the whip from a backbench Conservative MP who praised the Reform party’s only MP, Lee Anderson, as “Ashfield’s greatest champion”.
Anderson said he would not be campaigning in certain Conservative constituencies because of his friendships with some MPs, including Nick Fletcher.
The MP for Ashfield said “friendship means more” to him, as he outlined that Ben Bradley, the MP for Mansfield, Brendan Clarke-Smith, the MP for Bassetlaw, Marco Longhi, the MP for Dudley North, and Fletcher had reached out to him after he defected.
It prompted Fletcher to endorse Anderson as Ashfield’s “greatest champion”, saying he needed to be back in Westminster after the election.
But the Tory backbencher has been swiftly criticised by the Liberal Democrats who have said the comments show that even Conservative MPs do not want the party to succeed at the general election.
Fletcher said on X: “I so wish @LeeAndersonMP_ had remained with the Conservatives. However, having lost the whip it would mean the Conservative Party would choose someone other than Lee to fight the election in Ashfield.
“I can understand in those circumstances why he joined Reform. 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.”
Conservative party rules state members are required to “sustain and promote the objects and values of the Conservative party” and endorsing rival candidates could be grounds for a disciplinary investigation and potential expulsion.
But a spokesperson for the party said: “Nick has made clear he wants to see as many Conservatives as possible elected. A vote for Reform is a vote to let Keir Starmer into No 10.”
Reform UK has said it respects Anderson’s personal decision but the party will continue with its election campaigns in these seats.
The deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, 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 Reform UK spokesperson 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 respect 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.”
The former Tory deputy chair defected to Reform last month after he had the Tory whip removed for saying the London mayor, Sadiq Khan, was being controlled by Islamist extremists.
