Who is Laila Cunningham? Is she married, who is her husband - as Farage announces Reform's candidate for next London mayoral elections

The Reform UK leader made the announcement standing in front of banners which read “London needs Reform” at a central London press conference. Mr Farage said: “Laila Cunningham has already proven in her time with us as a party to be articulate, to be passionate, a mother, somebody who actually herself has had to effectively in the absence of the police, act as a police officer herself in defence of her children.

“She, from this moment on, will be the head of Reform UK London, our candidate for the mayor next year and the face of our campaign as we fight a strong, vigorous campaign in all 32 London boroughs in the run up to May 7.”

Laila Cunningham said local elections in May is the “first step” to “reclaiming” the city in the 2028 London mayoral elections. The Westminster councillor told a press conference: “Now I know that we’re still two and a half years away, but the election on May 7 is the first step.

“It’s the first step to reclaiming our city. Now, these local elections, I tell everyone, will be a referendum on Sadiq Khan, on Labour’s broken London. It’s London’s chance to vote out every councillor who’s propped him up and stayed silent while he’s let our city down.”

Laila Cunningham said she learned “the importance of team spirit” playing basketball in London and that her seven children are “seven reasons” that she wants to become Reform UK’s London mayor. She told a press conference: “I played in the London Youth Games from the best times of my life, and that’s where I learned the importance of team spirit.

“I became a senior Crown prosecutor here, and I’m raising my seven children here, and that’s seven reasons why I want to do this. I love this city with all my heart, but unlike some in this room, I’m not blind to what it’s become. London, one of the greatest cities on earth, is no longer safe, and that didn’t happen by accident.”

Laila Cunningham is a British Muslim politician, former senior Crown Prosecutor, and Westminster City Councillor for Reform UK, known for her strong focus on law and order. She defected from the Conservatives due to dissatisfaction with their crime policies.

Of Egyptian heritage, born to parents who emigrated in the 1960s, she is a mother of seven and a rising figure in Reform UK . She had four children from a ten-year marriage, which ended in divorce.

Cunningham remarried an American and had a son with him. She also raised his two existing children so considers herself to have seven children.