Congratulations to Ashley Fox MEP, who was yesterday elected as the new leader of the Conservative delegation in the European Parliament.
I should add that this hasn’t come about because Syed Kamall has been unseated, but rather because of a quirk in the timetabling of such elections.
When Martin Callanan lost his seat in May, Syed was elected to succeed him as Chairman of the ECR, the parliamentary group formed of our allies from across the EU. He was already the leader of the Tory MEPs, the elections for which take place each November, so he wore both hats for a few months until the ballot came round.
We’re told that Fox was elected on a good majority. He already has experience of the running of the delegation, having served as Chief Whip since 2010.