Bombshell as Tory MP Natalie Elphicke crosses the floor to Labour during PMQs slamming Rishi Sunak's 'broken promises' - with jubilant Keir Starmer hailing second defection in a fortnight after local elections meltdown

Rishi Sunak was hit with a bombshell today as another Tory defected to Labour slamming his 'broken promises'.

Dover MP Natalie Elphicke crossed the floor in the Commons just as Mr Sunak began a bruising PMQs session.

Having shaken her by the hand as she took a seat behind him, Keir Starmer seized on the news saying it showed the government was collapsing. Dan Poulter made the same switch at the end of last month.

However, the defection has caused a major backlash in Labour circles, with Ms Elphicke previously regarded as on the right of the Conservatives.

She also has a long record of attacking Keir Starmer's party, which shocked colleagues insisted she 'despised' up to now.  

Ms Elphicke took aim at Mr Sunak's 'tired and chaotic government' in her parting shot, saying the 'key deciding factors' for her had been 'housing and the safety and security of our borders'.

She said: 'Today I announce that I have decided to join the Labour Party and that I will sit in Parliament as a Labour MP.

'When I was elected in 2019, the Conservative Party occupied the centre ground of British politics. The party was about building the future and making the most of the opportunities that lay ahead for our country.

'Since then, many things have changed. The elected Prime Minister was ousted in a coup led by the unelected Rishi Sunak. 

'Under Rishi Sunak, the Conservatives have become a byword for incompetence and division. 

'The centre ground has been abandoned and key pledges of the 2019 manifesto have been ditched.'

Incredulous Tories immediately began circulating previous comments by Ms Elphicke condemning Labour for its 'open borders' policy. 

Rail minister Huw Merriman said the defection was 'shameless'.

He told BBC News: 'I've seen some sights in this place, but actually the lack of scruples on this one is a new bar that Natalie has created.

'Just recently she'd written a Daily Mail article saying 'Don't trust Labour on immigration, they really want open borders' and now she's sitting with them.

'Absolutely bizarre.'

Former minister Stephen Hammond told Sky News he was 'staggered' by the defection. 'If there's someone who, as much as anyone, has dragged my party away from the centre in the last few years it's Natalie,' he said. 

Other MPs swiped that Sir Keir was taking the 'absolute dregs' of the party. 

A Conservative member of Dover District Council described it as a 'kick in the guts'.

Councillor Stephen Manion, who represents Eastry Rural, said he was 'sickened'.

Some in Labour were also uncomfortable about the shock move, while the Corbynite Momentum pressure group said Ms Elphicke had 'no place in a Labour Party committed to progressive values'. 

Ms Elphicke had a 12,000 majority in Dover at the last election, and looked to have a good chance of holding the successor seat of Dover & Deal.

However, she is now expected to stand down with Labour's existing candidate Mike Tapp remaining in place. She has denied accepting a peerage to quit.

A jubilant Sir Keir goaded Mr Sunak in the Commons, asking 'what is the point of this failed Government staggering on' when 'the Tory MP for Dover on the front line of small boats crisis says the Prime Minister cannot be trusted with our borders and joins Labour'. 

'Why doesn't he put it to the test and call a general election?' he said.

Sir Keir railed: 'The voters tell him it's not good enough, instead of listening he keeps telling them everything's fine, if only they realise his greatness. He just doesn't get it.

'But at least after Thursday night he can go to the many places that he calls home and enjoy the fruits of his success. 

'In Southampton or Downing Street, he's got great Labour councils. At his mansion in Richmond he can enjoy a brand new Labour mayor of North Yorkshire. 

'At his pad in Kensington he can celebrate a historic third term for the Mayor of London.

'Now that he too could enjoy the benefits of this changed Labour Party, is he really still in such a hurry to get back to California?'

But a bullish Mr Sunak lashed back: 'I was, of course, surprised to see (Sir Keir) in North Yorkshire but probably not as surprised as he was when he realised he couldn't take the Tube there.

'I can tell him that the people of North Yorkshire believe in hard work, secure borders, lower taxes and straight-talking common sense, they're not going to get any of that from a virtue-signalling lawyer from north London.'

Mr Sunak is under massive pressure following the local elections, with Tories urging him to get more hardline on issues such as migration and tax. 

Rebels have so far held off on an all-out coup attempt, with ministers including Penny Mordaunt - tipped by some as a potential replacement - rallying round. 

But Liz Truss insisted last night that Mr Sunak must 'junk' plans such as the phased ban on cigarette sales, regarded as 'nanny state' by critics. 

The tensions surfaced at Cabinet yesterday, with Mr Gove understood to have warned over a lurch to the Right. 

Arguing that the party needed to maintain 'broad appeal' rather than taking positions that 'make us feel good about ourselves', he quoted supermodel Moss saying: 'Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels.'

According to the Times, the comments drew a sharp rebuke from Chris Heaton-Harris and Alister Jack, who shot back: 'I disagree with you. We shouldn't be apologists for what we believe in.' 

One Tory MP told MailOnline that Mr Gove quoting the supermodel - who did not invent the quip and has since suggested she regrets it - was 'deeply weird'.

Anxiety is rising in Conservative circles about the prospect of a wipeout at the election, after the dire showing in council and mayoral polls last week.

Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick has penned a report demanding a tougher approach on borders, while his ex-boss Suella Braverman has been similarly trenchant about changing direction. 

After announcing her defection, Ms Elphicke told reporters at Westminster: 'In 2019, the Conservatives stood on a manifesto that was very much centre ground, but under Rishi Sunak they've abandoned the centre ground and broken many election promises.

'Meanwhile, under Keir Starmer, Labour have changed. And I think that change is going to bring a much better future for our country and that's why I was so keen to join the Labour Party and play my part in bringing that important future forward.'

Asked about her previous criticism of Labour over immigration policy, she said Mr Sunak 'was the man who said he would stop the boats' but so far this year there had been 'record numbers of small boats arrivals'.

'So he's not stopping the boats and he's letting the country down.

'Meanwhile under Labour, they are clear that it is important to have defence and they want to make sure that they have good national security. So I think we should have confidence that Labour are the party who will tackle this issue of the small boats crossings.'

Speaking at a Tory fundraiser, Ms Mordaunt - often touted as a potential replacement - put on a show of loyalty to Mr Sunak and echoed Mr Gove's message about the need to hold the political centre ground. 

'You can't salami-slice Conservatism. If we do that, we lose our the power of our offer,' she said. 

'A Labour win at the General Election is not inevitable. It is not. 

'A Conservative win at the General Election is not impossible. But right now few can imagine it... 

'It is sometimes the people who no one imagines anything of that do the things no one can imagine.' 

On a round of broadcast interviews this morning, Net Zero Secretary Claire Coutinho insisted the Tories were aligned with the priorities of the British public despite the electoral mauling.

She acknowledged the results were 'disappointing' but said 'I do think we have a positive message that we need to communicate to people'.

Asked if the party needed to shift to the right, the Energy Secretary told Times Radio: 'I think what we need to do is to go where the country is.'

She added: 'They want us to be tough on immigration. They want us to be cognisant of the fact that they've had a difficult time when it comes to public finances, which is why we're putting forward £900 of tax cuts.

'They want us to make sure that we're protecting their security, which we are when it comes to defence, when it comes to energy as well.

'I would just have contrast with some of Labour's positions, when it comes to their mad energy plans which will hike up people's bills and heap costs on people, with the 75 new business regulations which will deter investment at a time when we need investment coming into this country and on things like immigration where they don't have a plan at all.'

Dover MP on the frontline of Channel migrant crisis who replaced jailed 'naughty Tory' ex-husband Charlie in Commons and criticised Marcus Rashford over free school meals campaign during Euros 

Natalie Elphicke shocked Westminster today as she crossed the floor to join Labour with a broadside at her former Tory colleagues over border security.

The 53-year-old has been in the firing line of the migrant crisis as the MP for Dover in Kent, where many of those crossing the Channel in small boats come ashore. 

She was elected in the seat in 2019, replacing her then husband Charlie, who was jailed the following year for sexually assaulting two women. 

Despite the trial hearing about his infidelities during their marriage, she backed him before and after the trial, supporting his appeal and saying her 'attractive' spouse had been an 'easy target' for false claims because he was 'charming, wealthy, charismatic and successful'.

With a majority of 12,278 her seat was firmly in Labour's sights against the backdrop of the ongoing issue of arrivals - although it is changing size and being renamed Dover and Deal at the next election.

Labour confirmed this afternoon that she is standing down at the next election.

She has also been a critic of the plan to send Channel migrants to Rwanda.  But she has also been highly critical of Labour. Just two years ago, when Keir Starmer was already leader, she accused the party of backing 'fewer and weaker border controls when it comes to illegal arrivals on our shores.' 

Her defection prompted anger from Tory MPs, with former minister Dame Andrea Jenkyns tweeting: 'You were a centre right Conservative, Labour want to give asylum to 50,000 plus people.

'I thought you had more conviction than to join the lefty Labour lot you despised so much!'

Her post contains a screenshot of a headline saying: 'Don't trust Labour on immigration they really want open borders, warns Natalie Elphicke.'

She hit the headlines in 2020 after she dumped her self-proclaimed 'naughty Tory' husband on Twitter after 25 years of marriage.

Charlie was convicted of three counts of sexual assault in 2020 and admitted to cheating on his wife during his trial.

He was freed on licence after serving half of his two-year prison sentence and after his release the former couple were forced to navigate the difficulties of bringing up their teenage son together.

In January 2022 he was pictured driving a 4x4 with a stony-faced Mrs Elphicke in the passenger seat near her £1.6 million home in Fulham, west London.

It is the first time the pair had been pictured together since they arrived hand-in-hand at court throughout his trial, which culminated in Mrs Elphicke storming out after the verdict.

She later backed a failed appeal against his prison sentence, saying she wanted him to 'co-parent their teenage son while he was growing up'.

A court heard she also loaned him £100,000 to cover legal costs. 

Writing in the Sun after he was jailed she said: 'Charlie is charming, wealthy, charismatic and successful — attractive, and attracted to, women. All things that in today's climate made him an easy target for dirty politics and false allegations.

'So I resolved to stand by him while he fought off these allegations in court and decided that I would leave him after that. It didn't quite work out that way.

'Following an unfair trial during the Covid-19 pandemic, I believe that Charlie was convicted in a terrible miscarriage of justice.

'It was obvious to me from reading the evidence during lockdown that the criminal allegations against him were complete nonsense, and I still believe they are.'

In 2021 she and four other backbenchers were suspended for trying to influence the judge sentencing her ex.

The Commons Standards Committee recommended that MsElphicke, Sir Roger Gale and Theresa Villiers should be suspended for one day for their actions at the hearing the previous year.

The three, along with fellow Tories Adam Holloway and Bob Stewart, breached the code of conduct through a letters to senior judges that were 'an attempt improperly to influence judicial proceedings,' the committee said.

All five wrote to senior members of the judiciary raising concerns that the trial judge was considering publishing positive character references provided for Mr Elphicke by Conservatives politicians.

The former Dover MP was jailed in September 2021, but it was not revealed until the following November that a quintet had provided positive references to the judge at Southwark Crown Court - MPs Gale, Stewart, Holloway and Villiers, plus peer Lord Freud.

That year she was also forced to backtrack after an horrific own goal attack on England star Marcus Rashford over his missed Euro 2020 penalty.

Ms Elphicke suggested the Manchester United star should have practised spot kicks instead of campaigning for free meals for deprived schoolchildren during lockdown.

She made the remark in a Tory MP WhatsApp group after the Three Lions' Euro 2020 defeat on penalties to Italy at Wembley in the delayed tournament.

Manchester United striker Rashford was one of three England players to miss in the deciding shoot-out in the Three Lions' first major final in 55 years.

In a message first revealed by GB News, Mrs Elphicke told other Tories: 'They lost - would it be ungenerous to suggest Rashford should have spent more time perfecting his game and less time playing politics.(sic)'

But today, after her comments were leaked and widely criticised she took to Twitter to heap praise on the team.

'Last night I shared the frustration and heartbreak of millions of England fans,' she said.

'The team gave their all. Congratulations and onwards to the World Cup!'

Ms Elphicke crossed the floor in the Commons just moments before Prime Minister's Questions.

It allowed Sir Keir to ask Mr Sunak 'what is the point of this failed Government staggering on' when 'the Tory MP for Dover on the front line of small boats crisis says the Prime Minister cannot be trusted with our borders and joins Labour?'.

In a statement announcing her defection she said: 'When I was elected in 2019, the Conservative Party occupied the centre ground of British politics. The party was about building the future and making the most of the opportunities that lay ahead for our country.

'Since then, many things have changed. The elected Prime Minister was ousted in a coup led by the unelected Rishi Sunak. Under Rishi Sunak, the Conservatives have become a byword for incompetence and division.

'The centre ground has been abandoned and key pledges of the 2019 manifesto have been ditched.

'Meanwhile the Labour Party has changed out of all recognition. Since 2019, it has moved on from Jeremy Corbyn and now, under Keir Starmer, occupies the centre ground of British politics.

'It has accepted Brexit and its economic policies and defence policies are responsible and can be trusted.

'Most significantly for me, the modern Labour Party looks to the future - to building a Britain of hope, optimism, opportunity and fairness. A Britain everyone can be part of.'