Danny Kruger is the Reform UK MP for East Wiltshire, having defected from the Conservative Party in September 2025. His move was part of a wave of Conservative MPs joining Reform UK in late 2025 and early 2026 — reflecting the deep crisis in the Conservative Party following its historic 2024 general election defeat.
Background and Career
Kruger worked in the voluntary sector and as a political thinker before entering frontline politics, with a focus on social renewal and civil society. He served as Political Secretary to Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2019, giving him significant insight into the machinery of government. He was first elected as the Conservative MP for Devizes in 2019, and then returned for the redrawn East Wiltshire constituency in 2024.
Intellectually, Kruger is associated with a strand of conservatism that emphasises community, family, and national identity — he has written and spoken about the importance of belonging and the failures of liberal individualism. These instincts made his eventual move to Reform UK a natural step as the Conservative Party struggled to articulate a distinctive direction in opposition.
Defection to Reform UK
Kruger resigned the Conservative whip in September 2025 and joined Reform UK, becoming the first of a significant wave of Conservative defectors to the party. He cited the Conservatives' failure to deliver on their promises to voters and his belief that Reform UK represented a more honest and effective vehicle for the change the country needed.
Career Timeline
- Pre-2019Career in voluntary sector; political adviser
- 2019Served as Political Secretary to PM Boris Johnson; elected Conservative MP for Devizes
- 2024Re-elected as Conservative MP for redrawn East Wiltshire constituency
- Sep 2025Defected to Reform UK — first of the wave of Conservative MPs to join
Frequently Asked Questions
Danny Kruger is the Reform UK MP for East Wiltshire. He was first elected as a Conservative MP in 2019, and defected to Reform UK in September 2025. He previously served as Political Secretary to Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Kruger left the Conservatives in September 2025, citing his view that the party had failed to deliver on its promises and that Reform UK better represented the values of his constituents and his own convictions on national sovereignty, immigration, and the need for radical change.
Kruger worked in the voluntary sector and as a political adviser before entering Parliament. He served as Political Secretary to Boris Johnson in 10 Downing Street in 2019. He is the son of the late businessman and philanthropist Michael Kruger.
Kruger represents East Wiltshire — a largely rural constituency in south-west England covering towns including Marlborough, Tidworth, and Pewsey. It was a safe Conservative seat before his defection to Reform UK.
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