Richard Tice, leader of Reform UK, has twisted the knife by saying he was “delighted” to deny the Tories victory in the crucial by-elections – with its vote exceeding the Labour majority in both cases.
Meanwhile Deputy Leader Ben Habib, like Mr Tice a former Brexit Party MEP, has said he and his colleagues were on a mission to “destroy the Conservative Party” – something he said was “well on the way to being delivered”.
The results – which saw Alistair Strathern win by 1,192 votes in Mid Bedfordshire, and Sarah Edwards prevail by 1,316 in Tamworth – represent a crushing blow for the Prime Minister with less than a year to go before the 2024 general election.
But Mr Tice pointed out their wins would not have been possible without the intervention of Reform UK, the successor to the Brexit Party previously led by Nigel Farage.
In Mid Bedfordshire, Dave Holland picked up 1,487 votes, while in Tamworth, Ian Cooper won the support of 1,373 people.
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Mr Tice, who took to X, previously Twitter, to thank both candidates, commented: “We, @reformparty_uk, delighted, in 3rd position, to ensure Tories lost Tamworth.
“This despite Tories spending huge money on adverts asking people not to vote Reform.
“Beat both Lib Dems and Greens by considerable margin.
In a second post he added: “In both seats @reformparty_uk’s share of vote exceeded Labour majority over the Conservatives.
“Twice in same night have @reformparty_uk ensured Tories lost their seat with this by-election result.”
Ben Habib, like Mr Tice a former MEP, was similarly upbeat, posting that his party was “delivering on phase one of our plan”.
He told Express.co.uk: “When I joined Reform UK I did so for two reasons.
“First to destroy the Conservative Parliamentary Party which has betrayed Brexit, Northern Ireland, and indeed all of the UK.
“They have broken the economy, the labour market and public services. They have opened our borders to unbridled Illegal and legal migration. They have to go.”
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The party’s second aim was to provide a “proper alternative” to both the Tories and Labour, Mr Habib continued.
He explained: “Reform UK will deliver Brexit, rescue Northern Ireland, slash EU regulations, cut taxes on businesses, the working and middle classes. We will jettison the highly inflationary and economically disastrous drive to Net Zero.
“Eliminate illegal migration and radically reduce legal migration.
“We will put the UK’s interest ahead of all else.”
He concluded: “The by-elections in Tamworth and Mid-Bedfordshire have proven that my first aim is well on its way to being delivered.
“Now we must build on those successes to gain seats in the Commons and deliver for the country.”
Pollster Professor Sir John Curtice has likewise pointed to the performance of Reform UK as a possible factor in the Tory defeat – suggesting it might continue to be a drag on their fortunes.
Speaking to the BBC, this morning, he warned the Tories “may get caught in a pincer movement between some of their former Leave voters wandering off to Labour but others going off to Reform UK”.
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