Conservative life peer Malcolm Offord has defected to Reform UK, marking a significant political shift and raising fresh questions about Tory unity.
At a rally in Falkirk, Nigel Farage revealed Lord Malcolm Offord as the most recent defector to join the party.
The Scottish financier was the treasurer of the Scottish Tories at the time of his defection and had previously been a minister in the Scotland Office during the previous Conservative administration.
Mr. Farage called Lord Offord's defection "a brave and historic act" and expressed his "delight" at having him join Reform.
Lord Offord declared in a speech that he would run in the May election for the Scottish Parliament.
He added:
“He will take Reform UK Scotland to a new level.”
As he got ready to run for a seat at Holyrood, he declared that he would resign from the House of Lords.
He told the rally:
“Scotland needs Reform and Reform is coming to Scotland.
Today I can announce that I am resigning from the Conservative Party. Today I am joining Reform UK and today I announce my intention to stand for Reform in the Holyrood election in May next year.
That means that from today, for the next five months, day and night, I shall be campaigning with all of you tirelessly for two objectives.
The first objective is to remove this rotten SNP Government after 18 years, and the second is to present a positive vision for Scotland inside the UK, to restore Scotland to being a prosperous, proud, healthy and happy country.”
Boris Johnson, the prime minister at the time, appointed the Greenock-born businessman a life peer in 2021. From 2023 until the general election in July 2024, he was the minister of exports. He had previously given the party close to £150,000.
He became Baron Offord of Garvel after receiving his peerage.
He becomes the most recent prominent defector of Reform in Scotland. Graham Simpson, a Scottish Tory MSP who also spoke at the Falkirk gathering, and a number of other councillors around the nation had previously declared their defection.
Lord Offord chastised his former party for having "given up on Scotland."
Discussing his experiences with the Scottish Tories, the former minister said:
“What I found, quite candidly, is a party which is regional not national, parochial not political, timid not ambitious; a party without a vision of how to govern Scotland with a right-of-centre agenda.”
In 2021, he ran for Holyrood in the Lothian region, but he came in fifth.
Farage reiterated assertions that one in three Glasgow pupils do n't speak English as their first language during his address to Reform members at the Macdonald Inchyra Hotel.
Asked about the comments by reporters, Lord Offord said:
“I think he’s highlighting an issue which needs to be talked about.”
Asked if the comments represent a “dog whistle”, he continued:
“I don’t believe it’s a dog whistle, I think it’s a fact.”
A spokesman for the Scottish Tories said:
“Any vote for Reform next year will only tighten the SNP’s grip on power at Holyrood.
Nigel Farage has been clear he is fine with John Swinney staying as First Minister, his party stood pro-independence candidates in the last election, and he is still courting others who would break up the UK.
The Scottish Conservatives, under Russell Findlay’s leadership, recognise that many people feel completely disconnected from politics.
That is why we will continue to relentlessly focus on promoting common sense Conservative policies to grow our economy and stand up for the priorities of mainstream Scotland.”
Jackie Baillie, deputy leader of Scottish Labour, said:
“This defection proves what we already know: Reform aren’t even Tories in disguise anymore, they are just Tories – the same Tories that broke the immigration system, collapsed the economy and left working Scots to pay the price.
This isn’t change – it’s the same failed politicians and failed ideas trying to divide our country.
A vote for Reform is a vote that helps keep the SNP in power and blocks the change Scotland desperately needs.
Scotland needs a party focused on rebuilding our NHS and delivering real change for working people – not a party of failed Conservatives playing political musical chairs.”
How will Offord joining Reform affect Scottish election odds?
Lord Malcolm Offord's dereliction to Reform UK will hardly boost the party's Scottish election odds for 2026 Holyrood by enhancing credibility among right- sect choosers, potentially consolidating 10- 15 support and obliging Scottish rightists into 4th place, though SNP/ Labour dominance limits overall impact.
Offord's profile as ex-Tory minister, patron (£150k), and treasurer adds legality to Reform's Holyrood drive, following Graham Simpson's switch and Farage's Falkirk rally countersign as" major," targeting Unionist choosers disabused with Kemi Badenoch's" skittish" leadership. Pates show Reform at 12- 15 (e.g.,post-local earnings), with Offord querying Lothians list for MSP advance.
The move accelerates Tory collapse in Scotland (5- 7 pates), unyoking right- sect vote and abetting Reform's indigenous list strategy, as Offord quits Lords to run, echoing Danny Kruger's Westminster dereliction.