Victoria Atkins blames Reform UK for loss of 'hard-working' Tory MPs despite surge in polls: 'No Conservatives will follow Nigel Farage!'

Reform UK are continuing to celebrate their growing momentum in Scotland, where recent polling puts the party above 10 per cent support.

Atkins urged disaffected voters to remain with the Conservatives, stating: "If you're as sick of this government as I already am, then please help us, as Conservatives, [to] defeat them at the next election."

According to Britain's leading elections expert Sir John Curtice, Reform UK could secure between eight to twelve MSPs in the Scottish Parliament if an early election were held.

Curtice has claimed that Reform's potential presence in Holyrood would make it "impossible to form either a government that was backed solely by pro-independence parties or a government that was backed solely by Labour, Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives".

Atkins focused her criticism on Labour's recent policy decisions, particularly regarding winter fuel allowances for pensioners.

"We've had the front pages today of a government that is removing this allowance from vulnerable pensioners who may be on an income of 13,000 or 14,000," she said.

She argued that working as an effective Conservative opposition was more important than allowing "a minority party leader to make these claims."

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The Shadow Environment Secretary highlighted concerns about Labour's economic policies, stating: "They have a problem with the massive hike in National Insurance that they are putting on employers that's going to have a huge impact across the board, including with job losses."

She also criticised what she called the "family farm tax" and pointed to reports of Labour MPs arranging their affairs to avoid inheritance tax.

Atkins took a strong stance against following Reform UK's figurehead Nigel Farage, particularly on the issue of MPs' expenses claims.

"I'm sorry, no Conservative will ever follow Mr Farage," she declared emphatically.

She insisted that Labour's decision to remove winter fuel payments from pensioners was the real issue at hand.

"It is for individual MPs to decide their expenses claims, what they're prepared to claim for," Atkins said.

She concluded by reinforcing the Conservatives' role as the main opposition: "We as Conservatives are the effective opposition to this Budget of broken promises.

"We are working very hard to hold this government to account, but we need people to join us so that we can hold them to account."