Early evening summary
Rishi Sunak’s faltering election campaign suffered a fresh blow tonight when the outgoing MP Lucy Allan resigned from the party and backed the Reform UK candidate to replace her in Telford. Explaining her decision, Allan said:
I have resigned from the Conservative party to support Alan Adams to be Telford’s next MP.
I have known Alan for many years and he is genuinely the best person for the job. I want the best for Telford and I can’t just let the Labour candidate have a walkover. ”
As a Royal Navy veteran, Alan knows what it means to serve. He is the candidate who is most in touch with Telford people and best able to represent them. He will serve all residents, not just those who vote for him.
Keir Starmer has delivered his first proper campaign speech, insisting that voters can trust him on on security – “economic security, border security and national security”. (See 12.20pm.)
The Conservative campaign pledge to introduce mandatory national service was dreamed up by advisers and sprung on candidates, Steve Baker, a Northern Ireland minister, has said. Labour said the national service plan was “unravelling by the minute”. (See 9.07am.)
Sunak has rejected claims that he plans to leave the UK and move to California if he loses the election. (See 5.31pm.)
Updated
These are from my colleague Peter Walker, who was at the Rishi Sunak event in Amersham this afternoon.
Look who has just turned up at a rugby club in Amersham, the Home Counties seats nicked by the Lib Dems to begin the blue wall era. This is, frankly, the sort of seat that in most elections the Conservatives should win without breaking a sweat, let alone a PM visit. pic.twitter.com/0OW9gJestV
— Peter Walker (@peterwalker99) May 27, 2024
Look who has just turned up at a rugby club in Amersham, the Home Counties seats nicked by the Lib Dems to begin the blue wall era. This is, frankly, the sort of seat that in most elections the Conservatives should win without breaking a sweat, let alone a PM visit.
Gareth Williams, the local Tory candidate, gave a flavour of the area with his own stump speech by naming as the first problematic Labour policy the imposition of VAT on private school fees.
Sunak mentions national service in his stump speech - but not first. Has a long go at Labour too. Says Labour is taking the electorate for granted.
We are promised some off-camera media questions after the speech. Let’s see if this largesse extends to the Guardian.
Questions from the PM were granted to Telegraph, Express, Mail, i, BBC, Politico, but *not* the Guardian.
