British Conservative lawmaker Suella Braverman, who was home secretary — the UK equivalent to interior minister — between 2022 and 2023, has joined Nigel Farage's populist Reform UK party.

Braverman, a sitting member of parliament, is the latest in a string of high-profile Conservatives join Farage's camp. Reform UK is currently the fourth power in the House of Commons but leading opinion polls ahead of both the ruling Labour Party and the Tories  as both traditional parties struggle.

"Britain is indeed broken," Braverman said at a rally, echoing a Farage catchphrase in an appearance alongside him. "We can either continue down this route of managed decline to weakness and surrender, ‍or we can fix our country." 

The former home secretary announced the defection at a press event in front of military veterans alongside Farage on Monday. 

"I feel like I've come home," Braverman said twice to applause from the crowd. 

She thanked the soldiers and tried to draw parallels between her decision to switch sides and their military service. 

"You've put your country first. You've sacrificed. You've given us everything," she said. "And you didn't do that for applause. You didn't serve your country for reward. You did it because you believed passionately in the greatness of our country."

Braverman said that the troops had ultimately put their lives on the line out of "love for our dear country," and said that she was acting out of the same love.

She also sought to link some of Reform's policy positions to military traditions. 

"You believe fiercely in its value. You're not apologizing for our history. You're proud of the vast contribution that Britain has made to civilization for centuries," Braverman said. 

Both Britain's main parties are currently polling at some of their lowest ratings ever. The Conservatives are still flailing after their landslide defeat in the summer of 2024 after almost 15 years at the helm, while Labour's popularity has taken several serious dents during Prime Minister Keir Starmer's first 18 months in office. 

A series of politicians, mainly from the right flank of the Conservative Party, have switched to Reform in recent months. 

On January 15, Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch sacked Robert Jenrick, once touted as a potential rival for the party leadership. Badenoch said that his draft resignation letter had been left on view in party offices and that she was trying to preempt Jenrick's attempt to leave with the most publicity possible.

Other prominent turncoats include, but are not limited to:

• Former Chancellor of the Exchequer Nadim Zahawi, the right-hand man to short-lived ex-Prime Minister Liz Truss 
• Novelist turned Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries
• The party's former deputy chairman, Lee Anderson
• The former public secretary to Boris Johnson, Danny Kruger
• Former MP Andrea Jenkyns, now the mayor of Greater Lincolnshire

https://www.dw.com/en/uk-suella-braverman-defects-from-conservatives-to-reform/a-75664224

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