Nadine Dorries has defected to Reform UK on the eve of its conference, declaring the Conservative party “is dead”. The former cabinet minister and close ally of Boris Johnson served as culture secretary until 2022 and resigned a year later after being blocked from receiving a peerage.
Dorries told the Daily Mail: “The Tory party is dead. Its members now need to think the unthinkable and look to the future.” After months of secret talks at a Mayfair club, she said the Conservatives had left her and her values now aligned with Reform. She is the third former cabinet minister to join Reform in recent months, following Jake Berry and David Jones.
Reform leader Nigel Farage welcomed Dorries, calling her “a hugely successful politician, author and columnist” who would boost their campaign to win the next general election. A Labour spokesperson criticised Dorries, saying she “helped to kill” the Tory party and highlighted her support for Boris Johnson during the Partygate scandal.
The defection comes as Reform enjoys a double-digit poll lead and has attracted nearly £1 million from former Tory donors in the second quarter of the year, including £500,000 from property billionaire Nick Candy. Other donations include £200,000 from Bassim Haidar and £100,000 from Johan Christofferson.
Reform’s membership has grown from 80,000 to nearly 240,000 since last year’s conference, and it now holds 900 councillors across 12 local authorities. The party’s conference in Birmingham on Friday will see Farage outline next steps after leading in the polls for six months.
