Former Conservative chairman and Lancashire MP Sir Jake Berry joins Reform UK
The former MP for Rossendale and Darwen, who served as Northern Powerhouse minister under Boris Johnson, said he had instead joined Nigel Farage's party because the Tories had 'lost their way'.
The move from Sir Jake, who also served as Tory chairman in Liz Truss' short-lived government, comes just days after former Conservative cabinet minister David Jones also joined Reform.
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Speaking to the Sun newspaper, the new Reform member said: 'Our streets are completely lawless.
"Migration is out of control. Taxes are going through the roof.
'Old Westminster politics has failed. Millions of people, just like me, want a country they can be proud of again. The only way we get that is with Reform in government.
'Some people are giving up. Not me. I'm staying. And I'm fighting."
Other ex-Tories who have joined Reform include Marco Longhi, Anne Marie Morris, Ross Thomson, Aiden Burley and Dame Andrea Jenkyns, now the mayor of Greater Lincolnshire.
The former MP for Rossendale and Darwen lost his seat in the 2024 general election to Labour's Andy MacNae, who had a majority of 6,000 over Sir Jake. Mr MacNae won with 18,246 votes to Sir Jake's 12,619.
Reform's candidate Daniel Matchett followed in a close third with 9,695 votes.
Since his loss, Sir Jake has worked in broadcasting, hosting a show on Talk TV. Before serving in Ms Truss's government, he was a minister during both Boris Johnson and Theresa May's premierships, with responsibilities focused on the Northern Powerhouse and levelling up.
In a video published alongside the Sun's reporting, Sir Jake spoke of his time in government. After claiming that 'Britain is broken', he added: 'I know who broke it because I was there.
'For 30 years I supported the Conservative Party, for 14 years I was one of their MPs, sitting at that Cabinet table twice.
'I want to tell you today my friends that I have come to a decision. The old parties do not have what it takes to transform our country, to build a Britain we can believe in again, and that's why I've decided to join the Reform Party.'
Sir Jake, who opposed Brexit ahead of the 2016 referendum, commended his new party leader Mr Farage for having 'always stuck by his principles, even when it was unpopular'.
A Labour Party spokesperson, said: 'Not content with taking advice from Liz Truss, Nigel Farage has now tempted her Tory party chairman into his ranks.
'It's clear Farage wants Liz Truss's reckless economics, which crashed our economy and sent mortgages spiralling, to be Reform's blueprint for Britain. It's a recipe for disaster and working people would be left paying the price.
'Only our Labour Government is putting more money in people's pockets, boosting British jobs, and delivering the renewal our country needs through our Plan for Change.'
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