Zia Yusuf, a self-described ‘British Muslim patriot’, leaves a celebration accused of fuelling Islamophobia after 11 months.
The Muslim chairman of the UK’s radical right-wing Reform UK get together has stop after denouncing a name from inside get together ranks to ban the burqa as “dumb”.
“I now not imagine working to get a Reform authorities elected is an effective use of my time, and hereby resign the workplace,” Zia Yusuf introduced on X on Thursday, hours after hitting out at Reform UK lawmaker Sarah Pochin for asking Prime Minister Keir Starmer whether or not his authorities would think about banning the burqa.
Pochin gained her seat in a by-election final month that noticed the anti-immigration get together, a few of whose members have been accused of Islamophobia, make significant gains in a political panorama historically dominated by the governing Labour Get together and the opposition Conservatives.
The brand new lawmaker had urged Labour’s Starmer throughout her debut look at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday if he would think about the transfer “within the pursuits of public security”, in line with the BBC.
“I do suppose it’s dumb for a celebration to ask the PM if they’d do one thing the get together itself wouldn’t do,” Yusuf mentioned on X amid an ensuing flare-up over whether or not banning the burqa must be get together coverage.
Yusuf, a former banker and self-described “proud British Muslim patriot”, turned Reform UK chairman after final yr’s common election, having jumped ship from the Conservative Get together.
Reform UK, led by Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage, gained 4 parliamentary seats in a breakthrough end result last year, happening to achieve a fifth parliamentary seat, its first mayoralty and various council seats in local elections final month.
It at present leads nationwide opinion polls, forward of the Labour Get together.
Farage mentioned on X that Yusuf was “an enormous consider our success on Might 1st and is an enormously gifted individual”.
Divisions within the get together’s higher ranks have been made public earlier than.
In March, Reform referred one in every of its lawmakers, Rupert Lowe, to police over various allegations, together with threats of bodily violence in opposition to Yusuf.
Prosecutors later mentioned they’d not deliver costs in opposition to Lowe, who was suspended by the get together.
