Robert Jenrick has accused the Conservative Party of being run by the same 'arsonists' who destroyed its reputation, hitting back at allegations of lying from his former leader, Kemi Badenoch. In his first interview since defecting to Reform UK, the former shadow justice secretary told the BBC that the party had not changed since the election and was incapable of understanding its mistakes.
Jenrick defended his honesty despite telling the Conservative chief whip on Thursday he would never defect, a claim Badenoch used to accuse him of lying. 'You can't believe a word that comes out of his mouth,' she said, adding that she was glad Nigel Farage was 'doing my spring cleaning for me.'
The defection has been welcomed by Reform MPs but also by some Conservatives who believe it strengthens Badenoch's position. Michael Gove, however, warned that Reform risked looking like 'Slytherin house' after the defection of Nadhim Zahawi earlier this week.
Jenrick urged other rightwingers to join Reform, writing in the Telegraph that 'the future of the country is on the line.' But he told the BBC he was not aware of any other imminent high-profile defections. Labour dismissed Farage's claims of an incoming Labour defector, with Rachel Reeves saying his comments should be taken 'with a pinch of salt.'
