Reform bags a defection, but is still in search of a proper policy platform

And it’s true that Mr Simpson’s name has often come up in conversations about potential defectors, alongside a couple of others.

But credit where it’s due, Reform managed to keep schtum right up to the moment the former Tory MSP entered a room full of reporters at a hotel in Uphall, West Lothian.

I’d love to say there were gasps, but no. There was, however, a lot of frantic posting on social media. Make no mistake: this is a big blow for the Scottish Tories, if only because it adds to the perception of a party in deep trouble.

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Mr Simpson said he had been through “a lot of soul-searching” in the past few weeks, and Reform offered the opportunity to create something fresh. He said it was an “absolute wrench” to leave the party he had first joined at the age of 15.

Asked about defecting to Reform by a journalist in March, Mr Simpson had responded: “Don’t be silly.” Reminded of this on Wednesday, he said he had not been considering it back then, but had done some “deep thinking” over the summer.

Mr Simpson is a list MSP for Central Scotland, meaning he was not directly elected by his constituents, but owes his position to the wider Tory vote. While admitting this made him “uneasy”, he said he would not stand down.

But what kind of party is Mr Simpson actually defecting to? Other than on big issues such as immigration and net zero, Reform still do not have a policy platform in Scotland. And after today’s press conference, we are none the wiser.

“I’m not going to dictate from London what platform we should run on in terms of dealing with NHS problems in Scotland,” Mr Farage told me. “I’m going to leave that to the Scottish party to work out.”

Mr Simpson said he will help shape this. “I’ll be setting out very, very soon what I think the challenges are for the party and what some of the solutions are,” he added. Time for some more deep thinking, perhaps.