Two Conservative councillors in the North Shropshire constituency have defected to Richard Tice and Laurence Fox’s parties in rows over immigration, ahead of the by-election in the seat next Thursday. 

Mark Whittle, a councillor and deputy mayor of Market Drayton, defected to the former’s Reform UK, while Anthony Allen has joined the latter’s Reclaim Party.

Voters in the constituency will elect a new MP next Thursday following the resignation of Owen Paterson, amid claims he had lobbied ministers inappropriately.

Mr Whittle decided to leave the Conservatives after campaigning with the party’s candidate, Neil Shastri-Hurst, on the doorstep.

He accused Mr Shastri-Hurst, a barrister and former Army doctor, of having “zero knowledge of Shropshire”.

‘It is too late for him to relocate to Shropshire if he wins’

“As chairman of the Market Drayton Conservative Party and member of Shropshire Conservative executive, this is the most difficult decision I have ever made – made only after a great deal of soul searching,” he said.

“How can I possibly back a candidate from Birmingham who has zero knowledge of North Shropshire and the challenges our community faces?

“It is too late for him to relocate to Shropshire if he wins. The Conservatives should have selected locally rather than be pressured into supporting someone with no prior interest or knowledge of the area.”

Mr Allen, who represents Market Drayton as a councillor, is Reclaim’s first elected official after the party’s launch on an anti-lockdown, pro-free speech platform earlier this year.

The defections follow last week’s Old Bexley and Sidcup by-election, at which Reform UK won 6.6 per cent of the vote.