Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch sacked her Shadow Cabinet colleague Robert Jenrick before he had a chance to defect to Reform
Nigel Farage must have struggled to contain his excitement. It’s clear he was planning to humiliate Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch by suddenly announcing that a key member of her Shadow Cabinet, Robert Jenrick, had switched sides to Reform. There have been plenty of Tory defections before, but Mr Jenrick was in a different league to the rest as Shadow Justice Secretary. For him to suddenly appear on stage, brand Kemi a loser and endorse Mr Farage, would be a huge coup.
Now, his plans have been ruined. It turns out Kemi Badenoch and her team are too smart for Reform. While the defection was not due to be announced today, Tories are convinced it was coming soon – but Kemi has ruined Nigel’s big day. By discovering the plot and summarily sacking Mr Jenrick, Mrs Badenoch has demonstrated both competence and strength. This still hurts her, but not half as much as it might have done.
Kemi Badenoch has proved she is the answer to Tory chaos (Image: Getty)
Robert Jenrick’s sacking has ruined Farage’s big day (Image: Getty)
In fact, some voters might rather admire the tough way she dealt with Mr Jenrick, saying in a statement: “I have sacked Robert Jenrick from the Shadow Cabinet, removed the whip and suspended his party membership with immediate effect.” And as for Robert himself – he doesn’t come out of it looking good.
Insiders say documents were left “lying around” that proved beyond doubt that he planned to defect. According to some reports, this was actually his resignation speech, although that has not been confirmed. We’ll find out more details very soon, no doubt.
But he doesn’t appear to have handled things well. And while Mr Jenrick has not yet confirmed anything, Mr Farage couldn’t quite bring himself to deny that a defection was planned (the Reform UK leader is very good at keeping secrets – which is part of being a good politician – but tells the truth when he does speak).
The defection wasn’t due to be announced today, but it was coming. The tipping point for Mr Jenrick appears to have been last year’s Conservative Party conference in Manchester, where the Tory leader gave a good speech and announced a popular policy, the abolition of stamp duty. It ended speculation that Tory MPs might remove Mrs Badenoch, and make Mr Jenrick leader in her place.
Responding to Kemi’s announcement, Mr Farage said: “I’m very surprised that this news is broken.”
He said: “Of course I’ve talked to Robert Jenrick. Was I on the verge of signing a document with him? No. But have we had conversations? Yes.”
And pressed by journalists today on whether Mr Jenrick was set to defect, Mr Farage said: “I think that’s been in his mind, yes. I’ve little doubt it’s been in his mind.”
Conservatives meanwhile say the evidence is “irrefutable” that Jenrick was due to switch sides.
The fact remains that Mr Jenrick is the second most high profile member of the Shadow Cabinet – after Mrs Badenoch herself. That’s not saying much, however, because the entire Conservative Party has struggled to make itself heard since massive defeat in the 2024 general election.
He’s also popular with grassroots Tories, regularly coming top of polls conducted by Conservative Home, a website for party activists.
So his defection, if and when it’s officially announced, still hurts Kemi. It still gives the impression that even senior Tory politicians, as Mr Jernick was until today, don’t think their party can win the next election.
But she’s done everything she possibly could to reduce the damage and might just come out of this affair looking stronger than before.
