Six MPs have split from Change UK just four months after the party was founded.
Among those to quit were interim leader Heidi Allen and party spokesperson Chuka Umunna. They were joined by Luciana Berger, Sarah Wollaston, Gavin Shuker and Angela Smith.
In a statement, the six said they would return to parliament as Independent MPs.
“We believe that our priority right now must be to provide collegiate leadership to bring people together in the national interest,” the group said.
“We know the landscape will continue to shift within the political environment and have concluded that by returning to sit as independents, we will be best placed to work cross party and respond flexibly”.
The move has left Change UK with less than half the MPs it once had, with just five politicians remaining.
Leader Heidi Allen and party spokesman Chuka Umunna were among those to leave the party, meaning just five MPs remain.
Former Tory MP Anna Soubry has been announced as the new leader. In a statement, Soubry said she was “deeply disappointed” by her former colleagues’ decision to leave.
In a statement, Soubry said she was “deeply disappointed” by her former colleagues’ decision to leave.
“Now is not the time to walk away, but instead to roll up our sleeves and stand up for the sensible mainstream centre ground which is unrepresented in British politics today,” she said.
Who is left in Change UK?
- Anna Soubry (Conservatives)
- Ann Coffey (Labour)
- Mike Gapes (Labour)
- Chris Leslie (Labour)
- Joan Ryan (Labour)
The news comes just four months after eight Labour MPs and three Tories defected in order to form the party, which was originally known as The Independent Group.