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The Metropolitan Police has launched an investigation into suspended Reform MP Rupert Lowe.

It comes after the party revealed they had referred him to police and stripped him of the whip on Friday, alleging he made “verbal threats” against chairman Zia Yousaf – which Mr Lowe denies.

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A spokesperson for the Met told Sky News they have now launched an investigation “into an allegation of a series of verbal threats made by a 67-year-old man”.

They added: “Our original statement referred to alleged threats made in December 2024. We would like to clarify that when this matter was reported to us, it referred to a series of alleged threats made between December 2024 and February 2025.

“Further enquiries are ongoing at this stage.”

In response to the update, Mr Lowe said he was unaware of the specific allegations but denied wrongdoing.

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“I have instructed lawyers to represent me in this matter,” he said.

“My lawyers have made contact with the Met Police, and have made them aware of my willingness to co-operate in any necessary investigation.

“My lawyers have not yet received any contact from the police. It is highly unusual for the police to disclose anything to the media at this stage of an investigation.

“I remain unaware of the specific allegations, but in any event, I deny any wrongdoing.

“The allegations are entirely untrue.”

Why was Rupert Lowe suspended?

In a statement on Friday, Reform claimed it had received evidence from staff of “derogatory and discriminating remarks made about women” by Mr Lowe, 67, who was elected to his Great Yarmouth seat last year.

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Reform UK row: Who said what?

The statement also claimed Mr Lowe had “on at least two occasions made threats of physical violence” against Mr Yusuf and “accordingly, this matter is with the police”.

Mr Lowe denied the claims, describing them as “vexatious” and said it was “no surprise” that it had come a day after he raised “reasonable and constructive questions” about Reform leader Nigel Farage.

In an interview with the Daily Mail on Thursday, Mr Lowe had said Reform remains a “protest party led by the Messiah” under the Clacton MP.

Asked whether he thought the former UKIP leader had the potential to become prime minister, as his supporters have suggested, Mr Lowe said: “It’s too early to know whether Nigel will deliver the goods. He can only deliver if he surrounds himself with the right people.”

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He also claimed that he was “barely six months into being an MP” himself and “in the betting to be the next prime minister”.

War of words escalates

Those words could have struck a nerve with Mr Farage after Elon Musk, the Tesla and Space X billionaire who has become one of Donald Trump’s closest allies, suggested the Reform leader “doesn’t have what it takes” and that Mr Lowe should take over.

The pair launched bitter personal attacks on each other in articles for the Sunday Telegraph, with Mr Farage accusing Mr Lowe of falling out with all his fellow Reform MPs due to “outbursts” and “inappropriate” language.

He also quoted Labour minister Mike Kane, who said after a confrontation with Mr Lowe in the Commons that his anger “showed a man not in charge of his own faculties”.

In his article, Mr Lowe repeated his claim there is no credible evidence against him, said he was the victim of a “witch hunt” and the Reform UK leadership was unable even to accept the most mild constructive criticism.

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Why Boris’s best mate is off to Reform

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Why Boris's best mate is off to Reform

👉Listen to Politics at Sam and Anne’s on your podcast app👈       

Former Conservative chairman and friend of Boris Johnson – Sir Jake Berry – is defecting to Reform UK, causing more problems for Tory leader Kemi Badenoch.

On today’s episode, Sky News’ Sam Coates and Politico’s Anne McElvoy discuss if his defection will divide parts of Reform policy.

Elsewhere, the Anglo-French summit gets under way, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer hoping to announce a migration deal with French President Emmanuel Macron to deter small boat crossings.

Plus, chatter around Whitehall that No10 are considering a pre-summer reshuffle, but will it have any value?

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Australia to test CBDCs, stablecoins in next stage of crypto play

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Australia to test CBDCs, stablecoins in next stage of crypto play

Australia to test CBDCs, stablecoins in next stage of crypto play

The trial is part of Project Acacia, an initiative from the RBA exploring how digital money and tokenization could support financial markets in Australia.

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Starmer and Macron agree need for ‘new deterrent’ to stop small boat crossings

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Starmer and Macron agree need for 'new deterrent' to stop small boat crossings

Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron have agreed the need for a “new deterrent” to deter small boats crossings in the Channel, Downing Street has said.

The prime minister met Mr Macron this afternoon as part of the French president’s state visit to the UK, which began on Tuesday.

High up the agenda for the two leaders is the need to tackle small boat crossings in the Channel, which Mr Macron said yesterday was a “burden” for both the UK and France.

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The small boats crisis is a pressing issue for the prime minister, given that more than 20,000 migrants crossed the English Channel to the UK in the first six months of this year – a rise of almost 50% on the number crossing in 2024.

Sir Keir is hoping he can reach a deal for a one-in one-out return treaty with France, ahead of the UK-France summit on Thursday, which will involve ministerial teams from both nations.

The deal would see those crossing the Channel illegally sent back to France in exchange for Britain taking in any asylum seeker with a family connection in the UK.

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However, it is understood the deal is still in the balance, with some EU countries unhappy about France and the UK agreeing on a bilateral deal.

French newspaper Le Monde reports that up to 50 small boat migrants could be sent back to France each week, starting from August, as part of an agreement between Sir Keir and Mr Macron.

A statement from Downing Street said: “The prime minister met the French President Emmanuel Macron in Downing Street this afternoon.

“They reflected on the state visit of the president so far, agreeing that it had been an important representation of the deep ties between our two countries.

“Moving on to discuss joint working, they shared their desire to deepen our partnership further – from joint leadership in support of Ukraine to strengthening our defence collaboration and increasing bilateral trade and investment.”

It added: “The leaders agreed tackling the threat of irregular migration and small boat crossings is a shared priority that requires shared solutions.

“The prime minister spoke of his government’s toughening of the system in the past year to ensure rules are respected and enforced, including a massive surge in illegal working arrests to end the false promise of jobs that are used to sell spaces on boats.

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“The two leaders agreed on the need to go further and make progress on new and innovative solutions, including a new deterrent to break the business model of these gangs.”

Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, seized on the statement to criticise Labour for scrapping the Conservatives’ Rwanda plan, which the Tories claim would have sent asylum seekers “entering the UK illegally” to Rwanda.

He said in an online post: “We had a deterrent ready to go, where every single illegal immigrant arriving over the Channel would be sent to Rwanda.

“But Starmer cancelled this before it had a chance to start.

“Now, a year later, he’s realised he made a massive mistake. That’s why numbers have surged and this year so far has been the worst in history for illegal channel crossings.

“Starmer is weak and incompetent and he’s lost control of our borders.”

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