Tories must team up with Reform to oust Labour, Jacob Rees-Mogg tells Shropshire Conservatives

Former government minister Jacob Rees-Mogg told gathering of Conservatives in Shrewsbury the party will have to form a coalition with Reform UK to oust Labour from government.

Mr Rees-Mogg was in Shrewsbury on Friday (May 15) for a North Shropshire Conservative Association fundraiser event prior to speaking at Theatre Severn as part of a nationwide tour.

According to Sky News, Reform UK would gain 284 seats based on the national equivalent vote share of local election results.

That would be 42 seats short of a majority. The Conservatives, meanwhile, are forecast to have 96 seats, so if they struck a deal with Reform, that would be enough to form a coalition.

"It would be inconceivable that the Conservatives would do a deal with the left, rainbow coalition, because you would have to have everybody - SNP, the Greens and so on," said Mr Rees-Mogg.

"So that must be the only coalition option for the right, and I think it is better to do one before the election than afterwards because then you can win a big majority. And if I'm right in thinking that the country is ready for change, you need a big majority to do that, not just a relatively small one."

Former MP for North East Somerset Mr Rees-Mogg - who was a candidate for The Wrekin in 2001 - believes under-pressure Sir Keir Starmer cannot continue as Prime Minister.

"The truth is, there comes a point when, whether your Prime Minister is the best person or not, whether there's a mandate or not, politics has moved on," said Mr Rees-Mogg.

"So I don't see how he can carry on as Prime Minister- he doesn't have that automatic support you need as Prime Minister.

"If a Prime Minister doesn't have the authority to reshuffle his cabinet, he doesn't have the authority to be Prime Minister.

Labour’s Health Secretary Wes Streeting resigned last week and said he will stand if a potential Labour leadership is race is triggerered. Other names in the frame are Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham - should he win a by-election in Makerfield - and former deputy leader Angela Rayner.

"I think they're all good people," said Mr Rees-Mogg.

"I don't know Andy Burnham but I've spoken to Angela Rayner, Wes Streeting and Ed Miliband over the years.

"They're capable, interesting people in different degrees. They're not unrespectable candidates to be Prime Minister - I just don't think Labour has the right ideas for the country.

"And it's very difficult as a Prime Minister to come in halfway through to develop the ideas. Most ideas come from opposition and you've had time to work on them.

"The way the system works - if Angela Rayner has a brilliant idea for an Act of Parliament, by the time that's actually in front of Parliament, we're six months from a general election.

"So it's very hard to come in midway through to make your mark effectively."

Looking at the current political picture in Shropshire, Mr Rees-Mogg said the Conservatives have to stick to their principles if they ever want to run the unitary council again.

"It's always difficult when you've been in government for a long time and when you've lost good candidates, to build back quickly," he said.

"But you have to keep on sticking with your principles, talking about what we're going to do, how would you make local services better for them and help them get on with their own lives.

"And you can then look at things that the new incumbents do and say 'this is a mistake, this is making people's lives more difficult'.

"I've noticed there are a lot of road-calming schemes as you come into Shrewsbury, which are deeply inconvenient."