The boss of budget supermarket Iceland on Monday accused the Conservatives of having “failed the nation” as he announced his defection to Labour.
Former Tory donor Richard Walker, who last year attempted to become a Conservative MP candidate, said he no longer wants to stand for Parliament.
The executive chairman of the supermarket chain quit the party last October in a blow to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
On Monday he announced he had switched his support to Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour, saying the country is “in a mess” under the current Government.
He told the BBC: “I think the Conservatives have failed the nation.
"They’ve drifted badly out of touch with people like my customers, and they’re drifting further and further to the Right. What’s interesting is that my values and principles haven’t changed, and, while the Conservatives have moved away from me, Labour has steadily moved towards the centrist pragmatic views that I’ve long held.”
After failing to be selected for a Conservative seat, Mr Walker last year wrote to the PM detailing his “fervent wish” to join the list of approved party candidates. In the leaked letter, he said he had “done everything” asked of him and supported the Tories in the media by “keeping my distance from any policy area or organisation that may be at odds with the party’s position”.
He claimed the Tories had attempted to gag him from being outspoken on issues such as food banks and insisted the Labour leadership had offered him “absolutely nothing” to defect.
He said: “There’s not even been any conversation about that. I haven’t changed. I’ve stood firm. I think that’s my point.
"You know, I believe in conservative values with a small c. I think the Conservatives have steadily changed and certainly when I was trying to become a candidate, I was told to pipe down on issues that really matter to me like the alarming rise of food banks, by very senior people within the party."
Mr Walker used an opinion piece in the Guardian to praise Sir Keir for having “transformed” Labour.
The party leader, he wrote, “demonstrates a compassion and concern for the less fortunate that contrasts very favourably with the attitude of most of his opponents”.
While Mr Walker said he would be supporting Labour at the next general election, he said he was not becoming a party member.
Sir Keir, visiting a branch of Iceland in Warrington, said he was “delighted” by Mr Walker’s switch as he hinted at a possible role for him in a future Labour government.
Mr Walker, who introduced the Labour leader to staff, appeared to make a joke about former prime minister Boris Johnson as he welcomed Sir Keir to the frozen food store.
Calling it “absolutely fantastic” to welcome the Labour leader, Mr Walker said: “I’m delighted, unlike some politicians, you’re not hiding in a fridge.”
Sir Keir said: “I’m also delighted at the reason he’s come out for the Labour Party, because he recognised that we’re a changed Labour Party, that we’re pro-working people, we’re serious about the cost-of-living crisis and about stability and long-term strategy.
“I think it further cements the real profound way in which the Labour Party has changed under my leadership, as we go into this all-important year of the general election.”
Asked about a potential job for Mr Walker, Sir Keir said: “Richard Walker is wanting to work with us. He’s made it absolutely clear why he supports us and we’ll continue to talk to him.”
