Long-serving London Conservative resigns over ECHR stance

Summarised from BBC London's report · Updated 21 Oct, 05:44 · Archive

Andrew Boff has resigned from the Conservative Party after 53 years, saying he was blocked from the mayoral race over his support for the European Convention on Human Rights.

Andrew Boff, one of London's longest-serving Conservative politicians, has resigned from the party after 53 years. He said he was prevented from entering the race to become the Conservative candidate for London mayor because he supports the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Boff, who joined the party in 1973 and the London Assembly in 2008, called the decision "extraordinary and profoundly disappointing". He will now serve as an independent London-wide member.

In a statement, Boff defended the ECHR as a "safeguard against arbitrary government" rather than a left-wing project, noting that British Conservatives including Winston Churchill helped create it after World War Two. He argued that people's rights should not depend on which party holds a parliamentary majority, particularly in a country with no written constitution. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said in October 2025 that anyone who disagreed with leaving the ECHR "should not and cannot stand as a Conservative candidate".

Read the report

• Andrew Boff leaves London Tories after 53 yearsLondon Assembly member says he was blocked from the mayoral race over a disagreement over the ECHR.BBC London · 20 Oct, 18:50

In this story: Andrew Boff · Susan Hall · Kemi Badenoch · Conservative Party · London

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