FORMER Stratford MP Nadhim Zahawi has been slammed locally for his defection to Reform UK.
The 58 year-old, who was Conservative MP for Stratford from 2010 to 2024, announced his defection at a press conference in London on Monday (January 12) where he appeared alongside Reform UK leader Nigel Farage.
Speaking at the press conference, the former chancellor said Britain was “drinking at the last chance saloon” and “really does need Nigel Farage as prime minister”.
He cited problems with free speech “on X or even just down the pub” as one of the reasons he was joining Reform.
He also talked of an “over-powerful” civil service and quangos, major failures with mass migration and “bad, virtue-signalling legislation that has made us less competitive and less prosperous”.
His successor as Stratford MP, Liberal Democrat Manuela Perteghella, slammed Mr Zahawi’s move.
She said: “Two years ago, Nadhim Zahawi was a rare sight in Stratford-on-Avon, but the darling of the Conservative party, delighting in ministerial positions and showings of authority.
“As his constituent, I was continually frustrated by his complete lack of focus on local issues, and his populist moves. Brexit, for example, has been an unmitigated disaster which he fully supported.
“Zahawi is an ambitious man, whose decisions are based not on principle, but on populism.
“Reform is becoming a retirement home for disgraced former Conservative ministers.”
Chair of the constituency Labour Party Lee Rhodes added: “Yet another millionaire joins Reform. It just proves how out of touch both the Tories and Reform are.
“This wasn’t a bit-part Conservative. He was a senior figure at the heart of a government that trashed the economy, hollowed out public services, including the nation’s defence capability, and lost the trust of the country. As Chancellor and party chair, he helped make the mess – then walked away from it under a cloud after breaching the Ministerial Code over his tax affairs.”
Mr Zahawi was at the centre of several controversies during his time as Stratford MP.
He was sacked from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s cabinet for a ‘serious breach of the Ministerial Code’ in 2023 after it emerged Mr Zahawi had paid a seven-figure settlement, including a penalty, to HMRC for tax avoidance.
In 2013 it emerged taxpayers were paying for the electricity supply to his stables after Mr Zahawi put in a £5,822 expenses claim for his energy bills.
