Kemi Badenoch has been praised for sacking Robert Jenrick before he could announce his defection to Reform UK. The Conservative leader acted after receiving screenshots of Jenrick's resignation speech and media plan from a mole in his office.
Jenrick had spoken at length with Badenoch on the phone about party strategy just four days before his sacking, and had attended a shadow cabinet awayday the previous week. However, senior figures in Badenoch's office were sent evidence of his planned defection on Monday, including a speech that criticised senior Tories such as Priti Patel and Mel Stride, and praised Nigel Farage as the 'right person' to lead the country.
Badenoch's team acted swiftly, advising her to sack Jenrick immediately. A Tory source said: 'We knew we had to act immediately. If we challenged him first, there was a risk of him going straight out and doing it anyway.' The chief whip, Rebecca Harris, phoned Jenrick, who angrily denied planning to defect.
Badenoch released a video message laying out the charges, timed to coincide with a press conference by Nigel Farage in Scotland. Farage appeared caught off guard, saying: 'It sounds to me like she's panicked,' and insisting no deal had been done with Jenrick yet.
Condemnation of Jenrick from across the Conservative party was swift and brutal. One Tory MP called him a 'coward', another a 'traitor', and a former cabinet minister described him as 'a snake in the grass'. Badenoch's team were euphoric, with one senior Tory saying: 'Jenrick's clever-dick people, they're not so clever after all.'
