Former Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries has been unveiled as the latest Conservative to jump ship to Nigel Farage’s team – with the ex-I’m a Celeb star saying her old party is ‘dead’
Political wrecking ball Nadine Dorries has been unveiled as the latest Tory to jump ship to Reform.
In a scathing dig at her former colleagues, the former Culture Secretary and Boris Johnson super-loyalist declared the Conservative Party is “dead”. Nigel Farage has welcomed his new recruit, who had a colourful career in Parliament.
Ms Dorries was a divisive figure in Parliament, and is reported to have not ruled out a return. During her spell in Westminster she jetted off to take part in I’m a Celeb and was accused of trying to interfere with a probe into Partygate.
The gaffe-prone ex-Tory has spent the last three years trying to convince the world that a sinister plot led to Mr Johnson being ousted. Here we look at some of her most alarming and weird moments.
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Suspension for swanning off to be on I’m A Celeb
Ms Dorries became a household name in 2012 when she took part in ITV show I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here.
The problem was that she had not told her national or local party that she was going to do so. It meant she unexpectedly jetted off while Parliament was sitting – something Mr Farage can relate to.
She had the Tory whip withdrawn and landed herself in hot water for not declaring to Parliament how much she had been paid. And to make matters worse she was the first contestant to be voted off.
But she was allowed to rejoin the party in 2013, and went on to be one of the party’s leading lights.
10 week delay after quitting in strop
Ms Dorries sensationally announced she was quitting as an MP in 2023 – but then waited 10 weeks before actually doing so.
The former Culture Secretary announced she was stepping down on June 9 “with immediate effect” after being snubbed for a peerage. More than 75,000 people end up signing a petition demanding the “absentee” Tory finally resign or start “representing her constituents”. Shefford Town Council blasted the wantaway MP for her “scant interest” in her constituents and told her to step down immediately.
Interfering with Partygate probe
Ms Dorries was criticised in a scathing report accusing her of trying to undermine an investigation into Partygate.
In June 2023 the Privileges Committee said she and Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg had mounted “the most vociferous attacks … from the platform of their own hosted TV shows” on TalkTV and GB News respectively.
She was among 10 Tories – including fellow Reform defector Dame Andrea Jenkyns – found to have launched an “unprecedented and coordinated” campaign to undermine the inquiry into whether Mr Johnson misled Parliament.
The cross-party committee wrote: “Attacks by experienced members are all the more concerning as they would have known that during the course of an investigation it was not possible for the privileges committee to respond to the attacks.”
Heavily-panned book about ‘plot’ to oust Boris Johnson
Ms Dorries has spent the last three years trying to convince anyone who will listen that a sinister Tory plot toppled Boris Johnson.
She shone a light on this in her book The Plot, released in November 2023. It told a story of shady figures with nicknames like Dr No, The Wolf and The Dark Lord who were up to no good in No10.
Patrick Maguire in The Times described it as “the single weirdest book I have ever read”.
Rapping on TikTok to promote Online Safety Bill
Ms Dorries took to TikTok in 2022 for a wince-inducing clip to explain the Government’s online safety legislation.
In a 41-second video shot in her office, the Tory MP delivered a stilted rap about “a framework to protect internet users / From scams, illegal content and anonymous abusers”. She ended the clip with a mic drop.
This could be awkward in her new party though. Mr Farage has indicated he would tear the act up if he could.
Stark grooming gangs admission
In January Ms Dorries has revealed the Tory cabinet never discussed a national inquiry into grooming gangs when she was a member – despite agitating for one now.
The former Culture Secretary squirmed as she was pressed over Conservative “political opportunism”.
Ms Dorries, who was Culture Secretary under Boris Johnson, said former Home Secretaries Dame Priti Patel and Suella Braverman had questions to answer about the inaction. She said a new inquiry into grooming gangs was never discussed when she was in Cabinet.
Asked why the Tories had not done it when they had the chance, she told the BBC’s Victoria Derbyshire: “That’s a good question.” She went on: “I was Culture Secretary, this didn’t even come anywhere near my desk.”
Not declaring TV job earnings
The ex-Tory MP didn’t declare a single penny in earnings from nearly a year of presenting a high profile TV show – while largely absent from her day job as an MP.
Ms Dorries kicked off her broadcasting career in October 2022, filling in for Piers Morgan while he was on holiday from his show on Talk TV. She was later handed her own Friday night show on the channel.
But despite several MPs properly declaring thousands of pounds worth of fees after appearing as guests on the channel to Commons authorities – she never registered any earnings from the potentially lucrative job.
MPs are required to publicly declare most outside earnings – including fees from TV appearances.
‘70% fiction’ blog
Ms Dorries was criticised by the standards watchdog for MPs over a blog she ran.
It said the website could “mislead” constituents over the amount of time she spent in her patch. Ms Dorries retorted: “my blog is 70% fiction and 30% fact! It is written as a tool to enable my constituents to know me better and to reassure them of my commitment to Mid Bedfordshire. I rely heavily on poetic licence and frequently replace one place name/event/fact with another.”
It came over criticism that her main home was in Gloucestershire. But in 2010 she later retracted the comment, saying: “It also only takes any individual with a smattering of intelligence to see that everything on the blog is accurate, because it is largely a record of real time events. It was only ever the perception of where I was on any particular day which was disguised.”
She had been accused of wrongly declaring her constituency property as her second home – even though it was thought she spent most of her time there. But standards commissioner John Lyon decided that she had not broken the rules – as she was spending the majority of her time in the Cotswolds.
Wrongly claiming Channel 4 is publicly funded
The-then Culture Secretary blundered during a select committee grilling when she claimed Channel 4 was “in receipt of public money”.
In fact, the broadcaster is publicly owned but it is funded through a commercial model and does not receive taxpayers’ cash. Ms Dorries wanted to sell off the public service broadcaster – but the plans have now been ditched.
Congratulating Tory minister for wrong job
The bungling ex-Tory accidentally congratulated Nadhim Zahawi for being promoted to Health Secretary, rather than Chancellor under Mr Johnson. She tweeted: “He arrived in the U.K. a refugee who couldn’t speak English who knows nothing but to achieve against the odds.
“He will deliver for health in the same way he delivered for vaccines and education. A top cabinet minister. Congratulations my friend.” Ms Dorries swiftly deleted the tweet.
Accusing the BBC of nepotism after hiring her own daughters
Ms Dorries complained about nepotism at the BBC in a Tory conference event in 2021, saying it needed to “be more accessible to people from all backgrounds, not just people whose mum and dad worked there.”
She didn’t mention she had once employed her two daughters – Phillipa, then 27, and Jennifer, then 23 – in secretarial roles in her private office. Both daughters were paid from public funds at a cost to the taxpayer of up to £80,000, the Mirror previously revealed.
Forced to say she doesn’t fancy Boris Johnson after adoring memes
Ms Dorries has been one of Boris Johnson’s most vocal and staunch allies, sticking by the shamed PM even as his Government crumbled.
She was forced to insist she didn’t have a crush on Boris Johnson after endless memes circulated of her staring adoringly at him. Mr Johnson’s sister Rachel pressed her on the issue during her LBC show. But the Tory MP insisted: “I don’t fancy your brother – not a bit.”
Slating her own Government’s pandemic planning
Ms Dorries admitted Tory preparations for the Covid pandemic were “inadequate” in a ferocious Twitter rant against criticism of Boris Johnson.
She was enraged by Tory Jeremy Hunt – now the Chancellor – who said he would oppose Mr Johnson in a confidence vote last summer. “Your handling of the pandemic would have been a disaster,” she said.
Ms Dorries said Mr Hunt had claimed the Government would collapse after Brexit, adding: “You’ve been wrong about almost everything, you are wrong again now.” But her attack backfired when she admitted that the Tory Government’s pandemic preparedness during his tenure as Health Secretary “was found wanting and inadequate”.
Suggesting Liz Truss’s budget earrings give her the edge over Rishi Sunak
Ms Dorries frequently attacked Rishi Sunak during the Tory leadership race, who she appeared to blame for Mr Johnson’s downfall. In one Twitter outburst, she mocked Mr Sunak’s expensive taste in clothes by posting an article about the millionaire ex-Chancellor wearing a £3,500 suit before a vote and donning £490 Prada loafers on a visit to a building site.
She said his rival Ms Truss was more likely to be seen wearing £4.50 earrings from high street chain Claire’s Accessories. Ms Dorries has previously boasted about spending thousands of pounds on her own jewellery and clothes.
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