A Reform UK councillor has defected to the Conservatives because he had become “uncomfortable” with the party’s policies.

James Buchan, elected to sit in the borough of Dartford in Kent only in July, announced that he struggled with the idea of facing his family while still being part of Nigel Farage’s party.

He said: “I stood for election with the sole aim of working for my community and getting things done for local families. Having had the opportunity to see Reform from the inside, I’ve concluded that the party doesn’t really have the experience or ambition to do that.”

Buchan suggested Reform’s anti-immigration plans spread fear and that “relying on rhetoric and slogans isn’t going to help real families in communities” like his own.

He added: “The more I saw of Reform UK, the

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