Former Labour MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle is defecting to the Green Party. His defection is expected to be announced at an event in his former constituency of Brighton Kemptown alongside Green Party leader Zack Polanski at 4pm tomorrow.
The former Labour MP was suspended from the party in May 2024 after a complaint about his behaviour eight years previously, which he denied. This means he was unable to run again as a Labour MP in the 2024 general election, and was succeeded by Chris Ward, an ally of Keir Starmer. He was readmitted to the party in February 2025, but has now joined the Greens.
The New Statesman understands he plans to run for selection as the Green Party candidate for Brighton Kemptown in any upcoming general election.
Russell-Moyle’s defection is the latest in a series of positive developments for the Green Party since Polanski’s election. They are now the third largest party in the UK, having overtaken the Conservative Party with 150,000 members and are consistently polling around 15-17 per cent – neck-and-neck with the Labour Party. Russell-Moyle, as a former shadow minister, is the most high-profile defection to the Green Party from Labour to date.
[Further reading: Is this the end of Labour?]
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