“Ah, yes, Jake Berry, the Boris Johnson/Liz Truss acolyte who said “Can’t afford to eat? Just get a better paid job.”
Former Conservative Party chairman Jake Berry made headlines this week, announcing his defection from the Tories to Reform UK. Berry was a Conservative member for 25 years and an MP for 14 years. The move sparked a wave of mockery from political opponents and the public.
In an article for the Sun, Berry explained his decision, claiming both major parties have driven the country into decline.
“I hear from people in my community and beyond who say the same thing – ‘This isn’t the Britain I grew up in.’ And they’re right,” he wrote.
“It didn’t start with Labour. The Conservative governments I was part of share the blame … If you were deliberately trying to wreck the country, you’d be hard-pressed to do a better job than the last two decades of Labour and Tory rule.”
Berry claimed that only Reform could restore national pride, declaring:
“Millions of people, just like me, want a country they can be proud of again. The only way we get that is with Reform in government. That’s why I’ve resigned from the Conservative party. I’m now backing Reform UK and working to make them the next party of government.”
Naturally, Reform leader Nigel Farage welcomed the defection, hailing it as a courageous and principled stand.
“A very brave decision by Jake Berry to join Reform UK,” Farage said. “His admission that the Conservative government he was part of broke the country is unprecedented and principled.”
However, the response beyond Reform circles was far less flattering.
Among the many scathing responses, John O’Connell wrote on X:
“Ah, yes, Jake Berry, the Boris Johnson/Liz Truss acolyte who said “Can’t afford to eat? Just get a better paid job.” Further proof that it really is the dregs, rejects & castoffs of the Tory Party who switch to Reform in the forlorn hope of resuscitating their failed careers.”
O’Connell continued:
“Jake Berry was a serial failure in a long list of ministerial positions. And in true Tory style, when he was ejected by his constituency and lost his seat, he was given a Knighthood. Of course he was.”
Others shared similar scorn.
“He will fit right in Reform UK then,” was one comment.
“Another career politician, in it for themselves,” was another.
“Reform – the retirement home for failed Tories,” mocked one X user.
“Let’s not forget about the time Jake Berry collided with Robert Jenrick to award hardship funds to each other’s constituencies that they weren’t entitled to,” said another.
“I wonder how long before Nigel falls out with him,” one onlooker mocked.
Unsurprisingly, Labour seized the moment to attack both Reform and the Tories.
A Labour party statement refenced how Berry was a supporter of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss at various points. It read:
“Not content with taking advice from Liz Truss, Nigel Farage has now tempted her Tory Party chairman into his ranks.
“It’s clear Farage wants Liz Truss’s reckless economics, which crashed our economy and sent mortgages spiralling, to be Reform’s blueprint for Britain.
“It’s a recipe for disaster and working people would be left paying the price.
“Only our Labour government is putting more money in people’s pockets, boosting British jobs, and delivering the renewal our country needs through our Plan for Change.”
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