Laura Anne Jones, who defected from the Welsh Conservatives to Reform UK and was suspended over a racial slur, has been appointed deputy leader of Reform UK in Wales. Her appointment follows Helen Jenner becoming leader after Dan Thomas stepped down following his arrest on suspicion of assault and controlling or coercive behaviour; he denies wrongdoing and said he did not want the case to distract from the party’s work.

Jones, the Member of the Senedd for Sir Fynwy Torfaen, was suspended for 14 days in November after using a racial slur about Chinese people in a WhatsApp discussion about TikTok. She apologised, said she regretted the message and accepted that she needed to take greater care with her language. Reform leader Nigel Farage described the party’s recent difficulties as a “bump in the road”, while Thomas said Reform Wales had grown to 34 elected members and become the largest opposition group in Welsh history.