Zia Yusuf has said he regrets making a post on social media calling one of Reform's MPs "dumb", after she asked the prime minister if he would "ban the burka".
Yusuf, at the time the party chairman, posted on X on Thursday morning saying he thought it was "dumb" for the party's newest MP, Sarah Pochin, to ask Sir Keir Starmer the question as it wasn't party policy.
He resigned as chairman of Reform later that day, saying he no longer believed working to get the party elected "is a good use of my time".
But in a plot twist few saw coming, he returned to the party 48 hours later, now as the head of Reform DOGE, a group established to audit Reform-run councils and cut waste.
'I was reflecting the party's position'
Speaking about that post, Yusuf said: "I regret that tweet, but let me be clear what I meant by that.
"So, the first thing was the question was asked in the House of Commons, by Sarah - a brilliant MP - and then it was also made clear that that would not be party policy.
"So, that's all I was stating. I was reflecting the party's position."
Yusuf also said he resigned due to "exhaustion", he was working "pretty much non-stop, virtually no days off in those 11 months".
Nigel Farage has welcomed Yusuf's return, saying he is "delighted". As well as DOGE, the British businessman will also assist with policy, fundraising and media appearances.