An outgoing Tory MP has announced that he is joining the Labour Party and will support them in the general election.
Mark Logan, who had represented Bolton North East for the Conservatives since 2019, said Labour could “bring back optimism into British life”.
He told the BBC: “I believe as a politician it’s incumbent upon me to be able to say, to look people in the eyes in Bolton and say that I believe that a Labour government is going to serve you better, your interests better, it’s going to be better for your pockets, it’s better for the economy, it’s going to be better for the UK.”
Logan becomes the third Tory MP in barely a month to switch to Labour, following Dan Poulter and Natalie Elphicke.
Christian Wakeford, who was elected Conservative MP for Bury South in 2019, defected to Labour in January, 2022.
Logan said: “When I look back to my teenage years, in 1997 when Labour came to the fore at that time and we obviously heard the song Things Can Only Get Better, I feel that we’re at that point again in British politics and British history.”
He added: “For my constituents and for the country, it’s right that we get some stability back into the UK, we get optimism, we get new and fresh ideas.”
Logan said Rishi Sunak - who he backed to be Tory leader - could “leave politics with his head held high” if he loses the election on July 4.
But he said: “It’s more about not the the push factor of Conservatives, but the pull factor of Keir Starmer, the new cabinet that would come in, the fresh faces, the fresh ideas.”
A Conservative source said: “Much of the association wanted Mark Logan deselected for inactivity and his failure to be present in Bolton for extended periods of time.
“He has been lobbying No.10 for a peerage, so he didn’t have to bother with voters and has now jumped ship. People will reach their own conclusions as to his motivations.”
HuffPost UK revealed earlier this month, before Elphicke and Logan’s defections, that at least two Tories were preparing to jump ship to Labour before the election.
Logan’s defection is the latest blow to the prime minister as he tries to claw back Labour’s huge opinion poll lead between now and election day.
HuffPost UK has approached the Conservative Party for comment.