Former Conservative MS James Evans defects to Reform

Kyle Bright

Former Conservative politician James Evans has been unveiled by Reform UK leader Nigel Farage as the party’s latest defector ahead of May’s Senedd elections.

The announcement of his defection came during a press conference in Newport where party leader, Nigel Farage, revealed the leader of the party in Wales as ex-Tory council leader for Barnet, Dan Thomas.

Mr Evans acknowledged that he had been critical of Reform in the past and had done so publicly but said “serious people, not career politicians, reassess when the reality refuses to go away”.

“I looked again, I listened, I read the detail,” Mr Evans said.

“I saw a movement that has grown and starts where the other parties refuse to start, with the truth that Britain is broken, that Wales is broken and nothing gets fixed until you’re willing to admit it. That’s why I am here.”

He added that Plaid Cymru and the Green Party would lead Wales on a “slow march” to the break-up of the United Kingdom.

“I’m proudly Welsh but I’m proudly British,” Evans said. “These things are not in conflict and we are stronger together as one United Kingdom.”

James Evans had the whip removed from him by Welsh Conservative leader, Darren Millar, after he was informed by Mr Evans that he was continuing to engage with Reform about a potential defection.

He was dismissed as shadow cabinet secretary for health and social care and has since sat as an independent.

The announcement means that he now sits in the Senedd as a Reform member, bringing the party’s number of members in the Senedd to two.

Fellow former Conservative, Laura Anne Jones, defected to Reform in July as the party’s first Senedd member.

Today’s defection comes despite previous claims by Nigel Farage that he had “not spoken” to Mr Evans for “a couple of years”.

In fact, Mr Evans himself previously ruled out the possibility of a defection entirely. In a Facebook post in March, he said: “It’s easy to jump ship when things get tough, but real leadership takes courage and principles to drive change from within.

“I promise my constituents that I won’t sacrifice my values for political opportunity.

“Instead, I’ll stand firm and work with my Welsh Conservative colleagues to fix Wales for the benefit of everyone.”

'Led by Tories'

Welsh Labour said the unveiling of two former Conservative politicians at the Reform UK conference in Newport showed the party was “led by Tories”.

A spokesperson said: “Nigel Farage says there are no Tories in Wales – that’s because they’ve all jumped ship to Reform UK to save their own skins, with James Evans MS being the latest.

On the announcement of Reform's leader in Wales, they added: “And now we’ve got a man who was a London councillor until two months ago telling Wales what it needs.

“Ultimately it doesn’t matter who is named as Reform’s leader in Wales. They will just be Nigel Farage’s puppet, doing his bidding from Westminster and silencing the voices of the people of Wales.

“You can’t trust their leader. You can’t trust their words. Reform UK’s leader in Wales is another former Tory. Reform Wales: led by Tories.”

'Recycled, washed-out Tories'

Rhun ap Iorwerth, the leader of Plaid Cymru, said the defection of two more ex-Tories should “come as no surprise to the people of Wales”, and described the party's leader in Wales as “Farage's lapdog”.

“Now, there is no doubt that Reform UK are simply recycled, washed-out Tories looking for a new political home now the Conservatives are dead in the water.”

He added: “It doesn’t matter who Farage has selected to represent him. The so-called leader’s sole responsibility will be to get Nigel Farage into No 10 Downing Street, because for Reform, Wales is nothing but a stepping stone.

“As was proven in the Caerphilly by-election and supported by opinion poll after opinion poll, only Plaid Cymru can stop Reform in the election on 7 May.

“Therefore, the people of Wales face a clear choice: a party that always stands up for Wales with Plaid Cymru, or Farage’s lapdog running our NHS and schools.”

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader, Jane Dodds MS, called out the hypocrisy of Evans’ defection: “Less than a year ago, James Evans told the country that defecting to Reform without facing the voters was an act without principle. Now he has done exactly the same thing himself.

If he genuinely believes what he said then, there is only one credible course of action now. He should resign his seat and call a by-election, so voters can decide whether they want a Reform politician representing them.”