Robert Jenrick has insisted his defection to Reform UK was 'uniting the right', as he said he had put the country before his allegiance to the Conservative Party. In an interview with the BBC, Mr Jenrick denied that personal ambition had played a role in his defection after he was sacked from the shadow cabinet.
Arguing that nobody could 'seriously make that argument', he said he hoped Thursday would be remembered as 'a time when the right united, when people put aside party loyalties and came together to fix our country'. But his former leader, Kemi Badenoch, said she was happy to see him go, describing him as 'not a team player' and 'Nigel Farage's problem'.
Mr Jenrick’s sudden defection came hours after Mrs Badenoch dismissed him as shadow justice secretary and suspended him from the Conservative Party, accusing him of plotting to jump ship to Reform. Although both he and Mr Farage have said his defection had not been planned for Thursday, Mr Jenrick told the BBC he had 'resolved' to go during the Christmas break.
But the 'final straw' had come during a shadow cabinet away day last week, in which he had argued with fellow frontbenchers about whether Britain was 'broken'. He said some colleagues had agreed with him that Britain was broken, but argued they could not say so publicly because the Conservatives were responsible.
Despite denying he was considering a defection even after he had made up his mind, Mr Jenrick said he had not misled people over his plans. He said: 'I have been honest with the British people, and that’s what matters to me.' But on a visit to Aberdeen on Friday, Mrs Badenoch called him a liar as she ruled out any pact with Reform ahead of the next election.
Meanwhile, a leaked audio recording of Mr Jenrick appeared to reveal him heavily criticising the Reform UK leader in a speech to Tory members last year. The tape obtained by The Telegraph included claims that Mr Farage 'can’t even run a five-a-side team' and that Reform is 'not a serious party'. In his BBC interview, Mr Jenrick dismissed his previous comments about his new leader as part of 'the rough and tumble of politics', saying both he and Mr Farage had 'said stuff' about each other.
