Julie Girling, a British Conservative MEP, left the European Parliament's European Conservatives and Reformists group on Wednesday (28 February) to join the European People's Party.
"The time has come for me to part company with the ECR", said Girling, during an interview with EURACTIV at an event about the impact of Brexit on youth in Britain.
"We do not belong in a far-right, populist, nationalist party", Girling said, "I think we belong in the EPP. A lot of the decisions will be made by people who come from that EPP family. So it seems to me that from a Brexit point of view, it is a much better place for me, as a British MEP to be".
Girling represents South West England and has been a Member of the European Parliament since 2009. She has been in the ECR group since joining the Parliament, and an elected member of the Conservative party since 1999.
She admitted that she didn't know how the Conservative party would react to her move, saying, "I'm still a member of the Conservative party as I speak now. I hope that will continue. It's the Conservative party's position to be in the ECR, so in that sense I don't suppose they'll be terribly pleased with me".
