Britain’s Conservative Party has been thrown into renewed internal crisis following the dramatic dismissal of a prominent senior figure accused of orchestrating a secret defection plot. Party leader Kemi Badenoch announced the immediate removal of Justice spokesperson Robert Jenrick from both his parliamentary role and party membership on Thursday, citing compelling evidence of his planned departure from Conservative ranks.
In a decisive statement posted on social media platform X, Badenoch declared she had obtained undeniable proof that Jenrick was covertly planning to abandon the party. The Conservative leader expressed frustration with ongoing political theatrics, stating: The British public are tired of political psychodrama and so am I. They saw too much of it in the last government, they’re seeing too much of it in this government. I will not repeat those mistakes.
While Badenoch refrained from identifying Jenrick’s intended destination, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage confirmed he had engaged in discussions with the ousted parliamentarian. However, during a press conference coinciding with Badenoch’s announcement, Farage emphatically denied any imminent defection arrangement, stating he couldn’t in good conscience present Jenrick as another Conservative convert.
The Conservatives currently face a critical political challenge, squeezed between the governing Labour Party on the left and the surging Reform UK on the right. Reform has consistently outperformed the Conservatives in recent opinion polls, delivered a crushing blow during May’s local elections, and attracted a steady stream of defecting Tory members and officials, compounding the party’s existential crisis.