Ex-Tory Andrew Bridgen joins Laurence Fox's Reclaim party

The North West Leicestershire MP Andrew Bridgen has joined Reclaim, a party set up by actor Laurence Fox, following his expulsion from the Conservatives.

Mr Bridgen was kicked out of the party last month after comparing Covid vaccines to the "biggest crime against humanity since the Holocaust".

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called his comments "utterly unacceptable".

Announcing his decision to join Reclaim, Mr Bridgen said he had been "a prisoner" in the Conservatives.

"Now I have reclaimed my freedom," he told a press conference.

He also predicted he would not be the first MP to switch to Reclaim, saying: "This is just the beginning."

Mr Bridgen's decision to join Reclaim gives the party, which was established in 2020, its first MP.

Asked if he would now call a by-election, Mr Bridgen said there would be a general election next year and that he didn't want to put his constituents through "the rigour of having two elections in 12 months".