Reform UK has secured a second Member of the Senedd through defection whilst announcing a former London borough Conservative council leader will head its Welsh campaign for May’s crucial election.
James Evans, sacked as a Tory Senedd frontbencher last month over suspected defection plans, has joined the party alongside Dan Thomas, who led Barnet Council between 2019 and 2022 before it fell to Labour. Thomas defected to Reform last summer and resigned as Finchley Church End councillor in December after returning to Wales with his family following nearly 30 years in London.
The dual announcement at a Newport press conference this morning positions Reform to capitalise on polling suggesting catastrophic losses for both Labour and the Conservatives in the expanded 96-seat chamber.
Darren Millar, leader of Welsh Conservatives in the Senedd, had dismissed Evans as shadow cabinet secretary for health and social care and withdrawn the party whip last month. Evans, first elected in 2021, subsequently sat as an independent before today’s formal defection.
Reform already had one Senedd member after former Conservative Laura Anne Jones joined in July. The party now holds two seats in the current 60-seat assembly.
Recent polling indicates Labour faces potential reduction from its current 29 seats to just eight, dropping from government party of more than two decades to fourth-largest party. The survey suggests First Minister Eluned Morgan could see nationalists Plaid Cymru and the Greens take power in Cardiff, with Reform forming the main opposition.
However, the numbers suggest Reform will fall significantly short of taking power itself, even with Conservative support. Labour and the Conservatives combined are projected to hold little more than a dozen seats between them after the election expands the chamber to 96 members.
Thomas, born in South Wales, told the Newport event he had “fond memories” of growing up in Wales but left at 18 due to limited opportunities. “The well paying jobs and the high flying career paths are simply not there,” he stated, explaining his departure to build a financial services career in London whilst serving as councillor and council leader.
His speech addressed housing issues including houses in multiple occupation, barber shops and a car wash he claimed was “the centre of a people trafficking ring”. He described “uncontrolled immigration” as a major housing crisis cause.
Thomas criticised what he termed “weak and woke policing” in London and the impact of “uncontrolled immigration” on the city. He told attendees: “When Labour and Plaid Cymru say that you are not allowed to talk about immigration, when they try to shout you down by calling you a racist, please know that they are wrong and that they are out of touch.”
Rhun ap Iorwerth, Plaid Cymru leader, dismissed Thomas as Nigel Farage’s “lapdog”, stating the defections were unsurprising. “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 said.
He added that regardless of who Farage selected, the 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.”
The May Senedd election will determine whether polling predictions materialise and Reform can establish itself as Wales’s primary opposition party.
