Chuka Umunna is to vacate his existing south London seat to fight the Cities of London and Westminster constituency for the Liberal Democrats, as the party risks angering local activists by shuffling candidates to accommodate high-profile arrivals.
The announcement of Umunna’s move from Streatham comes as party sources said another ex-Labour MP, Luciana Berger, could be parachuted into a north London seat, Finchley and Golders Green.
The proposed move for Berger, who currently represents Liverpool Wavertree, has upset some local LibDems, with the existing candidate saying she still expected to fight it.
One LibDem activist said: “People are fed up with celebrity MP entryism. Hardworking candidates are being yanked out of their seats or pressured not to stand.” 
The LibDems have gained five new MPs in recent weeks, one via a by-election but the rest refugees from Labour – Umunna and Berger – and the Conservatives, in Sarah Wollaston and Phillip Lee.
Umunna, who quit Labour in February and joined the LibDems three months later, will move from his current Streatham seat to take on Mark Field, the former Foreign Office minister who escaped punishment after being filmed grabbing a climate protester by the neck.
In the 2017 election Field secured a 3,000-plus majority over Labour, with the LibDems a distant third. But the party believes a better indicator is May’s European elections, where in both parts of the constituency the LibDems won more votes than the Conservatives and Labour combined.
The constituency, which includes parliament, the West End and the financial centre of the City, was heavily pro-Remain in the 2016 referendum. He told the Guardian: “It’s absolutely clear that if you want to stop Brexit with no fudge or ambiguity, residents in this area are already picking the Liberal Democrats.”