Robert Jenrick, the former shadow justice secretary, defected to Nigel Farage's Reform UK on Thursday, branding the Conservatives a 'rotten' and 'failed' party. The move came hours after he was sacked by Tory leader Kemi Badenoch for allegedly plotting against her.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Farage in Westminster, Jenrick launched a scathing attack on his former colleagues. 'The Conservative party in Westminster isn't sorry, it doesn't get it, it hasn't changed, it won't change, it can't change,' he said. He singled out shadow chancellor Mel Stride and shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel for criticism over welfare and immigration policies.
Jenrick had the Conservative whip removed and his party membership suspended earlier in the day after Badenoch said she had found 'irrefutable evidence' of his planned defection. However, Jenrick admitted he had already resolved to leave the party that morning and would have done so in the coming days anyway.
Farage described Jenrick as the 'No 1 Tory we have all wanted to come over' and said that after the 7 May local elections, Reform would reject further defections. Jenrick confirmed he would not call a by-election in his Newark constituency and denied any leadership ambitions, stating he was 'just here to play my part'.
