Conservative MP Turns on Tories Over Chagos Islands Fiasco
Romford MP Andrew Rosindell has become the latest high-profile Conservative defector, joining Reform UK in a move that strengthens Nigel Farage's party just four days after another sitting Tory MP, Robert Jenrick, made a similar switch. The 59-year-old MP, who had been a shadow Foreign Office minister under Kemi Badenoch, cited his opposition to the UK's planned handover of sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius as the main reason for his defection.
Rosindell, a longtime advocate for the rights of the Chagossian community, has long expressed outrage at the 1971 forced relocation of islanders from Diego Garcia to make way for a major UK-US airbase. He accused both Labour and the Conservatives of "complicit" complicity in the surrender of this "sovereign British territory" to a foreign power.
In a scathing statement, Rosindell claimed that the Conservative party was "irreparably bound" to past mistakes and unwilling to take meaningful accountability for its decisions. This sentiment is echoed by Farage, who welcomed Rosindell into Reform UK as "a great patriot" who had been driven off course by the Tory party's "lies and hypocrisy".
The defection marks a significant blow to the Tories' credibility on an issue that has long divided the party. With both Labour and the Conservatives having failed to adequately challenge the UK government's plans, Reform UK now finds itself with seven MPs - including Rosindell - who have defected from their former parties.
Farage announced this week that any other potential defectors would need to join Reform UK by 7 May, a deadline coinciding with elections to Scotland and Wales' parliaments and councils across England. This move suggests the party is looking to capitalize on its growing momentum in an attempt to become a major force in British politics.
Rosindell's defection comes after two other sitting Tory MPs - Danny Kruger and Nadhim Zahawi, who is no longer an MP - made similar switches to Reform UK in recent months. The news has sparked controversy within the Conservative party, with some accusing Rosindell of "stabbing his friends" and "betraying" his former colleagues.
Romford MP Andrew Rosindell has become the latest high-profile Conservative defector, joining Reform UK in a move that strengthens Nigel Farage's party just four days after another sitting Tory MP, Robert Jenrick, made a similar switch. The 59-year-old MP, who had been a shadow Foreign Office minister under Kemi Badenoch, cited his opposition to the UK's planned handover of sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius as the main reason for his defection.
Rosindell, a longtime advocate for the rights of the Chagossian community, has long expressed outrage at the 1971 forced relocation of islanders from Diego Garcia to make way for a major UK-US airbase. He accused both Labour and the Conservatives of "complicit" complicity in the surrender of this "sovereign British territory" to a foreign power.
In a scathing statement, Rosindell claimed that the Conservative party was "irreparably bound" to past mistakes and unwilling to take meaningful accountability for its decisions. This sentiment is echoed by Farage, who welcomed Rosindell into Reform UK as "a great patriot" who had been driven off course by the Tory party's "lies and hypocrisy".
The defection marks a significant blow to the Tories' credibility on an issue that has long divided the party. With both Labour and the Conservatives having failed to adequately challenge the UK government's plans, Reform UK now finds itself with seven MPs - including Rosindell - who have defected from their former parties.
Farage announced this week that any other potential defectors would need to join Reform UK by 7 May, a deadline coinciding with elections to Scotland and Wales' parliaments and councils across England. This move suggests the party is looking to capitalize on its growing momentum in an attempt to become a major force in British politics.
Rosindell's defection comes after two other sitting Tory MPs - Danny Kruger and Nadhim Zahawi, who is no longer an MP - made similar switches to Reform UK in recent months. The news has sparked controversy within the Conservative party, with some accusing Rosindell of "stabbing his friends" and "betraying" his former colleagues.
he's left the Tories cuz they r plannin to hand over the chagos islands 2 mauritius... like, thats a huge deal and hes been fightin against it 4 years! 
he says the party is to blame 4 the islanders who were forced 2 leave their homes 4 a us airbase back in 71... talk about betrayal!!! 
he's now joinin reform uk and Farage is like super happy 2 have him on board lol, but others r callin out rosindell for "stabbin his friends"... i guess thats the price u pay 4 bein passionate about somethin u care about 
I'm telling ya, something fishy is going on here... First, a Tory MP defects to Reform UK over the Chagos Islands thing, and now another one jumps ship. It's like they're trying to create some kind of narrative around this whole thing. I mean, Andrew Rosindell was already a thorn in the side of the Tories with his Chagossian community advocacy, but now he's suddenly a "great patriot" who got driven off course by his own party? 
The Chagos Islands fiasco is a huge deal and it's shocking to see a prominent MP like Andrew Rosindell jump ship from the Tories. I get why he'd want to make a stand, though - the whole situation with the forced relocation of islanders is just so wrong 
. It's not surprising that Nigel Farage's Reform UK party has swooped in to pick up some of these defectors, but it does raise questions about their own motivations and whether they're just trying to cash in on a controversy 
. Anyway, this is going to be interesting - will the Tories be able to recover from this blow or will Reform UK continue to gain momentum? 
and now has 7 MPs! 
Farage is basically selling himself as the savior of Brexit... can he deliver? 
. I'm not surprised that Tory MPs are jumping ship over the Chagos Islands fiasco, but what really gets my goat is that they're doing it for some petty politics 
. Andrew Rosindell seems like a straight shooter, and I respect him for standing up against his own party on this one 
.
. But let's not forget that there are still plenty of us out here who care about what's going on in the world 
. Maybe we can learn from each other and work together towards some real change 
.
. Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing how this all plays out 
. One thing's for sure: it'll be interesting to watch the Tories try to regain their credibility on this one 
.
. See, when you know what's right and your party is going against it, sometimes you gotta take a stand 
. We all want to make mistakes with minimal consequences, but what if those mistakes cost people their homes and livelihoods? 
. We might just change the game 
!
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." - Lord Acton 