Times really have changed. What the hell has just happened?
Robert Jenrick has defected to Reform after Kemi Badenoch found some evidence and unceremoniously sacked him.
This should and could have been a mega moment for Nigel Farage.
Jenrick was a key Conservative face. He was in the shadow cabinet. He was really popular with party members.
He had been a leadership rival to Badenoch – and he was still snapping at her heels
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But Badenoch shocked all of us on Thursday morning – including Farage – when she dropped this bombshell video sacking Jenrick, because she said she had evidence he was going to defect and badmouth his colleagues
In doing that, in seizing the moment and surprising her enemies, she managed to turn what would have been a clear crisis into almost an opportunity as she took the momentum, showed the political authority and pushed Jenrick out before he jumped
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What’s the fallout?
I have been talking to Tory MPs on Thursday, and whether they were fans of Jenrick or fans of Badenoch, there is common agreement that she has seized the political authority in all of this.
Read more:
All the former Conservative MPs who have defected to Reform
Ex-Tory chancellor defects to Reform
In the bigger picture, Jenrick was a sitting shadow cabinet minister, one of the biggest faces of the party, and he has defected to Reform. What does that say about Badenoch’s leadership?
She is battling Farage not only at the polls but also within her own party – and there could be more defections yet.
