Nana Akua shuts down Labour councillor after ‘has-been’ jibe at Suella Braverman following Reform UK defection

The former Home Secretary became the eighth MP to sit under Reform's banner in the House of Commons, as she spoke at a Reform UK rally in London.

Speaking on GB News, Mr Salek said: "Look, I don’t think this was a huge surprise in the long run. She’d been on defection watch for a while, and her husband had jumped ship a few months earlier.

“The line that really stood out to me in that speech was her criticism of ‘political chameleons’.

"Now, there’s only one politician changing her colours today, and I think this is just another attempt by a politician trying to resuscitate her career.

“Honestly, I don’t really see the strategy here from Reform. I’m very open to anyone explaining it to me, because it looks like a bunch of has-beens to use a slightly unkind word.”

Nana interrupted: “She’s a sitting MP, though. She’s not a has-been she’s not an ex-MP.

“She’s a sitting MP, though. She’s not a has-been she’s not an ex-MP. She is currently an MP, and that adds to Reform’s tally, so she’s not really a has-been.”

The councillor replied: “Well, in the sense that she was Home Secretary and is now a backbencher.

"I think her best days in the Conservative Party are arguably behind her. She’s no longer seen as a rising star. There’s a 2024 intake now vying for that status.

“So she has to do something to get back into the public eye and revitalise her career.”

Mrs Braverman made her announcement at a Reform rally for veterans in London on Monday afternoon, declaring she felt as though she had "come home" to the party.

The Fareham & Waterlooville MP confirmed she was ending three decades of Conservative Party membership alongside resigning the Tory whip.

"Today, I am announcing that I am resigning the Conservative whip and my party membership of 30 years," Mrs Braverman said.

"And because I believe with my heart and soul that a better future is possible for us, I am joining Reform UK."

Speaking at the Reform rally, Mrs Braverman told supporters that Britain was "broken" and immigration was "out of control".

"We can either continue down this route of managed decline to weakness and surrender. Or we can fix our country, reclaim our power, rediscover our strength," she told the crowd.

Her switch follows similar moves by fellow right-wing Conservatives, including Robert Jenrick and Andrew Rosindell earlier this month.