Reform UK has reportedly set up a dedicated defections unit to vet Labour and Conservative politicians "looking to save their own skin" as Nigel Farage's party rides high in the polls.
The decision to formalise the vetting process follows a wave of high-profile Tory defections over the last year, such as Lee Anderson, a former Deputy Tory Chairman, ex-minister Dame Andrea Jenkyns and Nick Candy, the billionaire Tory donor, who was appointed as Reform UK's treasurer in December 2024.
With Reform in the spotlight and thousands of candidates lining up to join the party ahead of local May elections, politicians from the two main parties reportedly want in on the action too.
"We're very, very conscious of that," Reform MP for South Basildon and East Thurrock James McMurdock tells GB News.
REVEALED: Inside Reform UK's hunt for politicians 'saving their own skin' as party launches 'defections unit'Getty Images
"We recognise that there could be candidates from existing parties who are just looking to save their own skin. Just because someone wants to defect to us does not mean we accept them.
"In fact, it may not be widely understood, but there are conversations that have been had in the background where we have decided other people are not right for us."
Reform will be hoping its newly appointed "defections unit" will separate the wheat from the chaff as the party receives an increasing number of applications from disillusioned Conservative and Labour politicians ahead of the local elections in May.
The team will reportedly scrutinise aspiring defectors' background, motivations, and values.
It's part of Reform's broader effort to ensure the best people for the job face the electorate in the coming elections.
One Reform insider describes the vetting process as "hardcore" to GB News, adding that they are "failing 50 per cent of people who apply for candidacy".
The insider explained: "When you have to find 4,000 candidates, you have to vet and double-check because we're going to be under more scrutiny than anybody else."
He added: "It's hard bloody work."
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One Reform insider describes the vetting process as "hardcore"
Nigel FarageReform is attracting even more attention this week as Nigel Farage leads a backlash against the election delays in areas where they were expected to win big in May.
Nine councils were granted permission to delay their elections for one year last week in response to Labour's plan to turn 18 two-tier councils in England into unitary authorities.
In Thurrock - the unitary authority in Essex that's delayed local elections for one year - our exclusive analysis put Reform as having a chance of taking control of the entire council.
Reform blasted the move, accusing Labour of "colluding" with the Conservatives to thwart the insurgent party's rise to power as the delays are in areas where a strong turnout is expected.
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