UKIP members could defect to Conservatives en mass, Tory councilor tells RT (VIDEO)

Nigel Farage’s UKIP has been suffering from an identity crisis since Britain voted to leave the European Union, leaving its political purpose somewhat redundant and its members itching to join Conservative ranks.

According to Christopher Wood, the former UKIP leader on Hampshire County Council who recently defected to the Conservative Party, “huge numbers of members and supporters up and down the country are considering doing what I have done.”

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Wood told RT’s Polly Boiko that the Tories have been ticking all the boxes since Prime Minister Theresa May succeeded David Cameron as Conservative leader.

“You look at Theresa May’s conference speech, laying out the groundwork for Brexit, triggering Article 50 in March, I mean that’s exactly what I’ve been campaigning for as a UKIP member since 2012 on a national level. And that’s precisely what the Conservatives are now delivering. The effort and work Theresa May has been putting in, actually implementing UKIP policy, is fantastic.”

The party has braved rough seas since June when Nigel Farage stepped down, only to resume the leadership when newly elected leader Diane James resigned after just 18 days.

UKIP’s credibility took a further jolt after a very public brawl between two of its MEPs in Strasbourg. Steven Woolfe, who was once the favorite to become UKIP’s new leader, ended up in the hospital after an altercation with fellow MEP Mike Hookem.

Woolfe was rumored to be considering a defection to the Tories. After humiliating pictures of the altercation emerged, the North West England MEP quit UKIP to serve as an independent. He is yet to announce plans to defect, however.

UKIP’s donors also appear to be abandoning ship, with millionaire Paul Sykes announcing in September that he will switch his support to the Tories. Meanwhile, major backer Aaron Banks has threatened to pull the plug if party infighting isn’t brought under control.

As yet another leadership contest gets underway, former deputy leader Paul Nuttall has thrown his hat into the ring, as has one-time Cardiff South and Penarth parliamentary hopeful John Rees-Evans.

Rees-Evans, however, is possibly best known for having once been caught on camera saying “some homosexuals prefer sex with animals,” as he had witnessed a “homosexual donkey” trying to “rape” his horse.

“I had to give my horse a slap to protect him from the donkey,” he is heard telling activists at a rally.