There will be more defections to Reform to come

The leader of the Tory group at Glasgow City Council has defected to Reform UK.

Thomas Kerr may not be a household name beyond his own home – but he is very well known in the Scottish Conservative party – he was considered a rising star.

He stood in the General Election last year, he ran Meghan Gallagher’s campaign for the Scottish Tory leadership just a few months ago.

He will continue as the councillor for Shettleston but, from now on, representing Reform.

Politics

I can’t control defections to Reform, says Findlay after councillor’s switch

The leader of the Tories at Glasgow City Council announced on Thursday that he has joined the party led by Nigel Farage.

Glasgow City councillor Thomas Kerr. Thomas Kerr

Some Conservatives say he has jumped ship so he can be top of the Glasgow list for Reform at next year’s Holyrood election.

He would have been unlikely to top the Tory list ahead of sitting MSPs. But Thomas Kerr has been in the Scottish Conservatives a lot longer than party leader Russell Findlay.

Findlay is really still trying to establish himself, still trying to get known by voters – a Survation poll on Wednesday put his satisfaction rating at minus seven with almost a quarter of people polled never having heard of him.

On Thursday, he admitted he couldn’t control membership of his party.

Tory MSP Russell Findlay Russell Findlay

He says any conversations he has had with colleagues should remain private – which suggests to me he has had conversations about defections to Reform with members of his party.

I asked him how worried he was about defections to Reform after his big speech on Tuesday. He clearly didn’t know this was coming just 48 hours later.

Reform beat the Tories in 25 out of 57 seats in Scotland at the General Election, all the parties here are a bit worried about the rise of Nigel Farage’s party.

But this is a shock to the Scottish Conservatives and from what Reform say and what Russell Findlay said to me – it sounds like there could be more to come.