Strictly Come Dancing star Thomas Skinner has joined Reform, the party has today confirmed.
Skinner, who first made a claim to fame on The Apprentice in 2019, was seen posing with leader Nigel Farage in a post to social media today, which carried the caption: ‘Bosh!’
The 34-year-old businessman replied: ‘Good to see ya Nigel. Bosh.’
A Reform party spokesperson confirmed Skinner’s move to join on Tuesday.
Earlier this month, he said Sir Keir Starmer had ‘made some terrible decisions’, adding that he believed the Labour leader is ‘well out of his depth’.
Skinner publicly endorsed Farage and said he would vote for his party if there was an election tomorrow.
He said in a radio interview: ‘The people that are running this country aren’t people who know what it’s like not to have the rent money at the end of the month.
‘They don’t know how to run a business. They don’t know how to talk to people.
StrictlyCome Dancing Star Thomas Skinner (pictured, left) has joined Reform, the party has today confirmed
‘These are career politicians and – no disrespect, not all of them are like this – but the majority are.’
He also downplayed accusations that Farage is a career politician: ‘He’s better than Labour, and there is no other choice at the moment, is there? Kemi [Badenoch] and the Conservatives, bless her, she’s well out of her depth.’
Skinner is the latest high-profile figure to join Reform’s ranks. Last week saw Kemi Badenoch, leader of the Conservatives, suffer major blows after three of her MPs defected to Farage’s party.
Andrew Rosindell, who has been MP for Romford for almost 25 years and was Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs, blamed the Conservatives’ stance on Chagos for his decision.
He had been a Tory party member since he was 14 and is the third senior figure to cross over to Reform UK in the space of a week, following former Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi and Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick.
His move came just two days after opposition leader Ms Badenoch declared she was ‘100 per cent confident’ that no other members of her Shadow Cabinet would switch sides.
Farage said: ‘Andrew is a great patriot. The Tories’ lies and hypocrisy over the Chagos Islands betrayal has tipped him over the edge, and we are delighted to welcome him to our ranks.
‘He will be a great addition to our team ahead of the elections on May 7th.’
Skinner publicly endorsed Nigel Farage (pictured) and said he would vote for his party if there was an election tomorrow
Rosindell’s defection renewed claims that Reform – which at the weekend set a May deadline for defections – is now home to too many former Tories and so will not be seen as a radical new movement by voters at the next general election.
Last week Ms Badenoch claimed her party was stronger and more united after she dramatically sacked her leadership rival, Mr Jenrick, having discovered he was planning to defect, and thanked Mr Farage for doing her ‘spring cleaning’.
She also insisted she would never do a deal with Reform UK despite growing pleas for the two parties to work together so they can together defeat Labour at the next election.
