MS faced expulsion from Reform UK before shock Plaid Cymru defection
Emily Price
Sarah Cooper-Lesadd was on the verge of being expelled from Nigel Farage’s party when she defected to Plaid Cymru, a senior Reform UK official has claimed.
The Pen-y-bont Bro Morgannwg Member of the Senedd issued a damning statement on Tuesday (September 15) setting out her reasons for her shocking move from the right to the left of the political spectrum.
Cooper-Lesadd, who was elected to the Senedd under Farage’s banner just four months ago, accused Reform’s group in the Senedd of actively wanting the Welsh Government to fail without any regard for how that failure would impact Welsh people.
First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth welcomed the 31-year-old former Conservative to his party saying she had been “inspired” by Plaid’s vision for Wales.
Cooper-Lesadd’s defection came amid another blow for Reform with news of Welsh leader Dan Thomas’ decision to step down breaking at around the same time.
He had been arrested at the weekend on suspicion of assault and engaging in controlling or coercive behaviour. Thomas says he has done nothing wrong.
Cooper-Lesadd’s defection sparked strong criticism from Reform UK’s director of external affairs Matthew MacKinnon over democratic legitimacy due to the voting system used to elect her.
Under the new closed-list proportional system, voters did not cast their ballots for individual names, they voted directly for the political party.
There is no legislative requirement for an MS to resign or face a public vote if they switch parties or choose to sit as an independent.
In a post to X, MacKinnon called for Cooper-Lessad to quit her Senedd seat, claiming she was on the verge of being ousted from Farage’s party shortly before she announced her defection to Plaid.
He wrote: “On the verge of being expelled from the party and jumps ship before being pushed.
“Sarah Cooper-Lesadd represents the worst of our politics.
“Lied to and manipulated assessors throughout a new party selection process to ensure her election.
“Refused to open a constituency office.
“Refused to speak or acknowledge to colleagues and staff.
“Only speaks about herself on social media, the opposite of a team player.
“Once elected claimed she didn’t believe in many of Reform’s policies she believed in during her selection and election campaign.
“Openly admitted in a recent anauthorised media interview that she used Reform to get herself elected and wants to pursue her own agenda and not that of the party.
“She was elected on a list system under a Reform banner with a clear intention to pursue her own agenda and not Reform UK Wales.
“She was not elected as an independent. She has shamefully manipulated the party and the electorate. She should resign.”
Political commentators criticised MacKinnon’s admission that Reform’s elected representatives in the Senedd require authorisation to speak to the media.
He later shared a clip to X of the Senedd Sources podcast in which Cooper-Lesadd described her political beliefs as “centre-right” adding that her decision to join Reform UK was “pragmatic”.
During the interview, the Plaid Cymru newcomer also appeared to nod in agreement when the interviewer suggested she could find a political home in any of the Senedd’s political parties.
MacKinnon said Cooper-Lesadd “knew her days were numbered” when Reform UK’a headquarters saw the interview clip which aired at the end August.
Brycheiniog Tawe Nedd MS Iain McIntosh responded to MacKinnon’s comments saying Cooper-Lesadd had “stuck two fingers up to her constituents” who voted for a Reform UK representative.
McIntosh, who defected to Reform UK from the Conservatives when he was serving as a councillor in Powys, wrote: “If she has any principles or integrity, surely the right thing to do now is stand down, call a by-election, and stand to be judged by the electorate.”
Nation.Cymru put MacKinnon’s and MacIntosh’s points to Cooper-Lesadd and invited her to comment.
The Senedd Member didn’t dispute MacKinnon’s claim that she had been on the verge of being ejected from Reform UK.
She said this was because of her focus on “collaborative working” and the fact she wanted to work cross party on “furthering and strengthening rights for care leavers”.
“That is what I came in to advance, and they did not like the fact I wasn’t focusing on the party first,” the Plaid newbie said.
Cooper-Lesadd also strongly refuted claims that she had manipulated Reform’s Senedd election assessors.
She said: “The selection process was overwhelmingly focused on media skills and public speaking. That was the metric for ‘success’.
“Regarding a constituency office, the party never directly asked me about that.
“Matthew Makinnon who made these claims is never actually around and visits the Senedd twice a term.
“After I was elected, he never actually spoke to me and did not raise these concerns with me himself.
“Some Reform MS’s are opening offices which are clearly branded and obviously Reform premises.”
On her decision to take part in what MacKinnon described as an “unauthorised” media interview, Cooper-Lesadd argued that other Reform MS’s had been on podcasts such as Senedd Sources in the past.
“I would have thought would have been a normal thing to be part of,” she said.
Reform UK had selected Cooper-Lesadd as their lead candidate for Pen-y-bont Bro Morgannwg at the May Senedd election largely due to her powerful personal story, having spent her early childhood in the Welsh care system before being adopted.
However, she was not the party’s first choice for the constituency, which faced significant difficulties in finding suitable candidates to stand in the May 7 election.
Former Conservative advisor Corey Edwards was originally announced as Reform’s number one candidate in Pen-y-bont Bro Morgannwg while Derek Roberts was selected to stand in second place.
However, Edwards was forced to bow out of the race after Nation.Cymru revealed an image of him performing a Nazi salute.
Roberts also resigned after concerns were raised by his fellow Senedd election hopefuls about the racist and offensive content he was sharing online.
The pair have since been appointed as advisers to the Reform Senedd group.
Reform’s sixth placed candidate in Pen-y-bont Bro Morgannwg Owain Clatworthy also quit in protest of the party’s selection process, defecting instead to Restore Britain.
Fourth place candidate Toby Rhodes-Matthews was removed from the list too, with no reason given.
Although sources told Nation.Cymru he had been targeted by party officials after he raised the alarm about the online activities of Roberts.
The list was revised ahead of Reform’s Senedd election campaign and Cooper-Lesadd was awarded the top spot, despite opponents branding her as “parachute candidate” with a lack of local ties.
Support our Nation today
For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.
Get more trusted Welsh news
Choose Nation.Cymru as a preferred source in Google News to see more of our journalism.
MacKinnon is a disgusting person for many reasons and a pathetic excuse for a Welshman.
Ah, the No True Scotsman fallacy! Let’s not pretend that somehow we Welsh are morally superior in some way.
I said no such thing.
That’s the Iain McIntosh who didnt ‘stand down as a councillor’ and ‘call a by-election’ to be ‘judged by the electorate’ when he defected from the tories to Reform.
This would be the same Mackinnon as the convicted football hooligan and the same person who ran that anti Wales think tank Centre for Welsh Studies? doesn’t sound like the sort of person you really want to take seriously. And as for McIntosh what about all the people he let down when he slimed off to Reform, kettle, pot, black springs to mind.
Er would that be the Matthew MacKinnon who was a tory election candidate as recently as 2022 (before he himself DEFECTED….to Reform). And he’s not only another rank hypocrite in Reform – in 2012 he was banned from attending football matches for 3 years after pleading guilty to being involved in violence and disorder
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-17866287
Imagine having a convicted footie hooligan as your elected representative. Deeply mortifying.
MacKinnon and Sumner heavily influenced the Reform UK Senedd candidate selection process. It mainly favoured Gill-ites, mormons, ex-tories and some of their other ‘interests’. They have been wholly ‘played’ and out manoeuvred by Cooper-Lesadd! The fact that MacKinnon has taken to the echo-chamber of X/Twitter to vent about it, is really an expression of him being angry with himself for presiding over a process that allowed such infiltration! The fact that he has Brother McIntosh assisting him is also telling. He should apologise to the remaining Reform UK Senedd Members for his actions and then resign!
With Yusuf, MacKinnon, Powell and sumner gone, Reform UK would be a much better place. It is time for the senedd members outside of their crony group to stand up to them. I feel they are going to cave in to accepting H.Jenner as their new leader though – which means that they must be subservient to the crony group.
Reform attracts the Yusuf and Powell etc. This is what all of Reform is. Reform is never going to be for good, only the billionaires that bought Farage.
Reform do not like it on the other foot. How many of Reforms MP’s and councillors defected from the Conservatives to Reform?
And let’s not forget that Laura Anne Jones got elected through the same voting mechanism for the Tories and got welcomed with no complaints by the man at the top himself.
You did have a very good candidate, but you plotted against them, to stop them being selected! Big mistake.
Then you have the audacity, to use article 8, to stop journos reporting, that your leader was arrested, and on bail. When you bleat on, about leaving the echr!
And to the ms, who I know is reading this! Up yours!! I’ve always wanted to day that to you.
I’d go self catering in a war zone, rather than be a member of your party!
The former leader should be suspended. Not attending meetings.
This is just sour grapes from MacKinnon. He knows that Reform is in decline and that, like all trash parties, soon it will end up in the political landfill alongside all the other detritus.
Given the revelations about McKinnon in other comments it’ a case of a sour grape with egg on its face.
This seems completely surreal. Right wing politician with barely any connection to Wales, editor of some really unsavoury right wing journals. Parachuted into senedd safe seat. Was about to be kicked out reform. And plaid accepted her. Today she suddenly become a die hard nationalist wanting independence. It’s a total farce and makes a mockery of Welsh politics. The only good thing in all of this is that reform are totally peed off!
Mcintosh flashing his ignorance.
“Stuck two fingers up to her constituents”
Not quite
I guess he doesn’t realise that the majority of her constituents voted Plaid at the last election – 27,407
Reform came second to Plaid
They will be delighted that Reform have lost a seat.
McIntosh defected to Reform from the Conservatives when he was serving as a councillor in Powys. So it’s okay when a man does it but not a woman?
The Senedd is a farce.
The NHS doctors strikes continued in England. They did not strike here in Wales. I pay less for car insurance now due to the 20mph speed restrictions and safer roads
Mr Roath barely has a single braincell.
Sorry I’m just a fool with no thinking skills!
Well said. For now.
Jerry built electoral system shows structural defects within months. House built on sand?
Plaid always fall for London establishment figures don’t they.
Not wanting to promote the party’s “values” and “principles” actually sounds more like a ringing endorsement. And why is he casting judgement when he himself didn’t stand down when he defected from the Conservatives?
This whole Cooper-Lesedd episode is bizarre in the extreme, and needs far more serious scrutiny than it is receiving here. The whole focus of the new PR system was the proportional representation of voters by parties. Cooper-Lesedd was elected as a Reform MS
Cyntuno’n llwyr. Another angle is to note that Plaid have absorbed someone who is openly ‘centre right’ unless some ploy is going on. Me, I think Plaid should move to at least the centre. But we’d need to be clear what the actual centrish/rightish policies are going to be. Some could be good: wind back DEI, Net Zero, protect free speech in Wales. Others eg death penalty, abolish devolution won’t go down well. Cards on table please!
I think Plaid have been far too qúick in welcoming this lady into their ranks.They seem to forget that they are a minority government and now they only have Labour to bargain with over their budget they might just as well name Ken Skates as deputy prime minister.
I assume she has been subjected to scrutiny by the vetting panel. Given Marc Jones’ comments on Monday, it sounded as though some internal discussions had already been held so I don’t get the impression this was a spur of the moment decision. I understand the reservations but as a party, Plaid need to be willing to reach out and engage with people of different political persuasions if they want to achieve a majority. They can’t afford to close ranks and I think she will be monitored closely, particularly as her own comments seem to suggest.
So she can resign, if she wishes. But it is unconstitutional for her to defect to another party. Now she has stood down the next ReformUK candidate from the original election must be drafted in to fill her place.
I agree. In 2007 when Mohammad Asghar left Plaid for the Conservatives Plaid called on him to resign: BBC News – Plaid AM defects to Conservatives
If/When a Plaid MS leaves Plaid in this term I’m sure Plaid will call on them to resign too.
Umm, Jenrick, Sue Ellen?
True. When those clowns defect to another party, they never resign.
Weird that these sames clowns are calling for a new by election.
Pretty much everyone thinks it,s a weird move by SCL.
It seemed weird to me that she opted for reform to begin with unless she was using them as a way of advancing her cause no matter what the neighborhood smelt like.
Strategically I hope that Plaid has accepted her in order for her not to join Labour and boost them.
Calculating that she can,t jump ship again without loosing all credibility and languishing in the wilderness as an independent.
Altermatively maybe she found herself on the road to Damascus and saw the light.