Nigel Farage and Boris Johnson were today urged to join forces to come together in a Reform/Conservative alliance to save Britain.
Nadine Dorries, who last week sensationally defected from the Tories to Reform UK, appealed to both men to work together for the sake of the nation.
The former Tory Cabinet Minister warned that if the Right was split, it could pave the way to a Left-wing ‘unholy alliance’ of Jeremy Corbyn, the Greens and even ex-Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner taking power at the next election.
Ms Dorries, who 48 hours ago said ‘the Tory Party is dead’, declared: ‘We need all the political talents on the right of centre putting their shoulder to what needs to be done for the country.’
But she made clear that she did not think Kemi Badenoch would play any role in that, branding her ‘possibly the most useless leader of the Conservative Party‘.
Ms Dorries outspoken comments, on the Daily Mail’s latest ‘Alas Vine and Hitchens’ podcast, came on the final day of Reform’s party conference where Mr Farage has put his party on red alert for a general election as early as 2027 after predicting that the Labour government would disintegrate.
The Reform conference in Birmingham opened on Friday to the news, broken in the Daily Mail, that former Culture Secretary Ms Dorries – a close ally of former Tory PM Mr Johnson – was abandoning the Conservatives and joining Nigel Farage‘s party.
And on the Mail podcast hosted by Sarah Vine and Peter Hitchens, she was asked if her new party’s leader would be prepared to have Mr Johnson ‘in some sort of coalition’.
You can listen to the latest episode of Alas Vine & Hitchens by clicking the player below or here
Nadine Dorries (above) has called on Nigel Farage and Boris Johnson to work together for the sake of the nation
The Daily Mail revealed last week how Ms Dorries was abandoning the Convervatives to join Mr Farage (above) and Reform
Former Culture Secretary Ms Dorries is a close ally of former Tory PM Mr Johnson (above)
Ms Dorries replied that ‘all the political talents on the right of centre’ should do what the country needed.
She conceded she did not know how that would work ‘in reality’.
But she added: ‘If you start from the point that you need everybody with the passion to make this country a better place at the helm, then I think that’s a good place to start.’
Challenged that Mr Farage and Mr Johnson had probably the biggest egos in modern British politics, she replied: ‘If there’s a will to make the lives of those people better, then I think both men could and would find some way to accommodate each other’s egos and to coexist for the sake of the country.’
However, she also warned Tory MPs in general not to expect that they could simply transfer allegiance to Reform.
Ms Dorries said: ‘I haven’t had that conversation with Nigel Farage.
‘I think there are some figures, but very, very small in number, that he would welcome.
‘But the truth for most Conservative MPs is there is, there would be no common ground for rapprochement or any kind of accommodation.’
She also laid into Tory leader Kemi Badenoch’s performance, asking ‘Where is she?
‘Have you heard from Kemi during the summer?’
However, Sarah Vine defended Mrs Badenoch, insisting ‘she’s been doing quite a lot’.
To listen to the full interview with Nadine Dorries on the rise of Reform and the state of British politics, search for Alas Vine & Hitchens now, wherever you get your podcasts.
