Former Tory chair Baroness Sayeeda Warsi has quit the Conservatives in a furious row just as the party is preparing to gather for a crucial conference on its future in Birmingham.
The Muslim peer was brought in as chair by David Cameron in 2010 to help detoxify the party’s brand and bring it into the 21st century.
But since leaving government in 2014 Warsi has had a difficult relationship with the Tory leadership consistently calling out racism and islamophobia in the Conservative Party.
She has angered many recently as a passionate advocate for the suffering of Palestinians with Rishi Sunak as prime minister and the potential leadership candidates to replace him all supporting Israel instead of condemning the killing of 41,000 people in Gaza.
In a statement on X, formerly Twitter, Baroness Warsi said: “It is with a heavy heart that I have today informed my whip and decided for now to no longer take the Conservative whip.
“This is a sad day for me. I am a Conservative and remain so but sadly the current Party are far removed from the Party I joined and served in Cabinet.
“My decision is a reflection of how far right my Party has moved and the hypocrisy and double standards in its treatment of different communities.
“A timely reminder of the issues that I raise in my book Muslims Don’t Matter.”
The row seems to revolve around her agreeing that referring to ethnic minority Conservatives like Rishi Sunak as “coconuts” – a slur which means of colour on the outside and white on the inside – was an acceptable criticism. Wars pointed out that a trial against the person who had held up the banner, which many deemed racist, had ended in a not guilty verdict.
Baroness Warsi said: “I will not be gagged on a point of principle. And I am not prepared to play games behind closed doors.
“If Rishi Sunak’s party wants to retry and replay the coconut trial despite the acquittal of Marieha Hussain , the clear legal findings and the overwhelming expert witness testimonies then I wish to do so publicly and transparently.
“It would be unfair to do this whilst continuing to take the Conservatives whip.
“I realise I have the privilege of platform and I have decided to exercise that privilege by speaking truth to power.”
A Tory spokesperson said: “Complaints were received regarding divisive language allegedly used by Baroness Sayeeda Warsi. Baroness Warsi was informed an investigation was about to begin earlier this week.
“We have a responsibility to ensure that all complaints are investigated without prejudice.”