Rosindell Defects to Reform UK Over Chagos Islands Deal

Andrew Rosindell, the Conservative MP for Romford since 2001, defected to Reform UK on Monday, becoming the party's seventh member of Parliament and delivering another setback to Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch just days after a similar high-profile switch.

Rosindell, who served as shadow minister for foreign affairs, announced his resignation from the Conservative Party and his new affiliation in a statement on X, the social media platform. He described his decision as placing "country before party" after decades of loyalty to the Conservatives, which he joined at age 14 inspired by Margaret Thatcher's principles. The MP cited the Conservative Party's failure, both in government and opposition, to challenge the Labour government's agreement to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius as a key factor. Under the deal, reached in May 2024, Britain would retain a 99-year lease on the Diego Garcia military base for an annual payment of 101 million pounds, but Rosindell argued it undermined Chagossian self-determination and British sovereignty.

"Since entering Parliament in 2001, I have consistently argued... that the right of self-determination of the Chagossian...