Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has declared her party stronger and more united following the dramatic defection of former rival Robert Jenrick to Reform UK, whom she branded a liar and claimed she was glad to be rid of.
Spring Cleaning and Accusations of Lies
In a series of media interviews on Friday, Badenoch launched a scathing attack on Jenrick, who she sacked from the Shadow Cabinet after discovering he planned to defect. She thanked Nigel Farage for doing her "spring cleaning" by taking problematic figures out of the Conservative Party.
"It's quite clear that Robert Jenrick tells a lot of lies, and you can't believe a word that comes out of his mouth," Badenoch told GB News. She revealed that Jenrick had denied plans to defect just hours before evidence of prepared speeches was found.
Drawing a colourful analogy with The Times, she suggested Jenrick was "like someone wanting to be the priest of a church and not getting the job so going off to the mosque next door and saying, 'I’m going to be an imam now'."
A United Front or a Split Right?
Despite the upheaval, Badenoch expressed 100 per cent confidence that no other senior Shadow Cabinet members would follow Jenrick. She asserted the Tory team was now more cohesive without him, stating, "We are a stronger and more united team because Robert Jenrick is not a team player."
However, she issued a warning to any other Conservatives engaged in "psychodrama," suggesting they should also leave. Crucially, she ruled out any electoral pact with Reform UK to defeat Labour, asking rhetorically, "How do you do a deal with liars?"
This stance puts her at odds with some Tory figures, including Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg and Sir John Hayes, who have pleaded for cooperation to avoid a perpetual left-of-centre government.
Jenrick's Defence and the 'Slytherin House' Warning
In his defence, Robert Jenrick, now one of more than 20 former Tory MPs in Reform, insisted his move was about uniting the right to oust Labour. He told the BBC he had put party allegiance and personal ambition aside for the country.
"If you want to get rid of this Labour government... there's frankly only one way to do that. That is to vote for Nigel, to rally behind him and Reform," Jenrick argued.
His justification was met with scepticism from senior Tory voices. Lord Michael Gove, infamous for his own political manoeuvres, suggested Jenrick was "caught mid-plot." He also issued a stark warning about Reform's growing reputation, suggesting the party risked becoming the "Slytherin House" of British politics, a reference to the Hogwarts house associated with ambition and cunning in Harry Potter.
Former Tory MP Nick Fletcher echoed concerns about vote-splitting, predicting the defections could continue but that "maybe something will have to give" as the general election nears.
