The former Reform UK chair quit the party a week ago saying working to get them elected was no longer “a good use of my time”
Just days after quitting and rejoining the right-wing party, Zia Yusuf has signalled that he plans to stand as an MP in the next by-election where Reform UK has a chance of winning.
The situation was very different a week ago. Last Thursday, Yusuf resigned from his role as chair of Reform UK, stating that he no longer thought working to get Reform elected was a “good use of my time”.
This came after Reform’s newest MP, Sarah Pochin, asked Keir Starmer at Prime Minister’s Questions whether he would ban the burqa.
Just 48 hours later, Yusuf rejoined the party as head of Reform’s new Department of Government Efficiency (Doge).
A Reform source told The Telegraph: “He would make a fantastic candidate in the right by-election.”
There are currently no by-elections scheduled, but the move underlines how little credibility Reform UK has if someone who quit only a week ago is now being lined up as their next parliamentary candidate.
Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward
Left Foot Forward doesn't have the backing of big business or billionaires. We rely on the kind and generous support of ordinary people like you.
You can support hard-hitting journalism that holds the right to account, provides a forum for debate among progressives, and covers the stories the rest of the media ignore. Donate today.