Sadiq Khan criticises Tories and Reform UK after Lee Anderson defection

Sadiq Khan downplayed Lee Anderson's switch from the Conservatives to Reform UK, equating the two parties as indistinguishable and divisive.

Anderson had previously caused a scandal with Islamophobic remarks about Khan on GB News and was ousted from the Conservative Party. Khan criticized Conservative leaders for not openly condemning Islamophobia.

Anderson's shift to Reform culminated weeks of conjecture about his political future, and despite past claims of loyalty to the Conservatives, he chose not to provoke a by-election in his constituency. Reform UK leader Richard Tice expressed his enthusiastic reception of Anderson.