Nigel Farage 'will destroy Tories if we let him in' and 'doesn't share party's interests', says Foreign Secretary James Cleverly

The Home Secretary has warned that Nigel Farage will 'destroy' the Conservative Party if allowed in. James Cleverly said the Reform leader 'doesn't share my party's interests' and that he was intent on its destruction instead.

Mr Farage, who has recently floated leading a Reform-Conservative joint opposition if Labour are in government, has said the current Tory brand is 'finished'.

Mr Cleverly invoked George Galloway – the firebrand ex-Labour MP who is running a slate of candidates under a Workers Party banner – to suggest the Conservatives do not share values with Reform. 'He's said over and over again, he's trying to destroy my party,' Mr Cleverly told The Times.

'You're asking, would I welcome him? Of course not. Why don't you ask me if I would embrace George Galloway into the party? He's not a member of my party. He doesn't share my party's interests and he's been very explicit that he wants to destroy my party.'

Mr Cleverly said it would be a mistake to 'follow someone else's agenda'. Instead, the party must continue to be 'pragmatic' and stick to its traditional values to 'define our future'.

Other Tory heavyweights have also warned against welcoming Mr Farage into the fold in recent weeks.

Foreign Secretary David Cameron said he was determined to ensure Reform did not win a single seat so 'the Conservative party can move forward'. Ex-prime minister Theresa May, who is standing down as an MP, said Mr Farage was 'not a Conservative'.

But former ministers Suella Braverman and Robert Jenrick have both said they are open to having the Reform UK leader in the Conservative Party. Last month Jacob Rees-Mogg called on Rishi Sunak to make the Brexiteer a Tory minister and allow other senior Reform UK politicians to stand as candidates at the election.

It comes amid warnings from economists that the tax and spending plans of Reform UK would crash the pound and drive up borrowing costs. The plans include £90 billion of tax cuts and £50 billion more spending a year, paid for by slashing benefits and ending public sector waste.