Shadow minister replacing Robert Jenrick says Tories ‘let down’ the country in government – UK politics live | Politics
New shadow justice secretary apologizes after Jenrick leaves Reform
Hello and welcome to the UK politics liveblog with me, Tom Ambrose.
We start this morning with tracking and reaction Robert Jenrick dramatic dismissal conservatives and his subsequent – although not depressingly surprising – defection to Nigel Farage UK Reformation party.
Shadow justice minister was Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch He was a leadership rival and the bookies’ favorite after failing to make any impact in the polls.
Jenrick was sacked from the shadow cabinet and suspended from the Conservative party after Badenoch said he had been presented with “irrefutable evidence” that he was planning to defect.
And he did so just a few hours later, walking out as Farage’s last member of the Reform fold, packed with old Tories who they say are bringing Britain down, who are fast becoming the political equivalent of Trigger’s broom.
It sounds like this Nick Timothy He said he was “sad” at the way the Conservatives had handled things in the last few years in power.
The new shadow justice secretary told BBC Breakfast that it was clear the country was “disappointed by some of the events that have happened”.
When asked if he was upset, Timothy said:
As a Conservative, I have said I was sorry for the way the party has handled certain issues over the last few years, and I have been very clear about this since I was first elected 18 months ago.
The Conservative party will not move on and persuade people to vote for us in the numbers we need in the future unless we look them in the eye and say we understand why we lost the election.
Timothy added that Jenrick was “my friend” but that the public was fed up with the “backbiting and backstabbing” in politics.
He said:
Yes, Rob has been a friend of mine for a while. It is obviously disappointing that he has decided to move on, but the truth is that what we learned yesterday was a stark contrast between the Kemi Badenoch-led Conservatives and other parties and what they offer Britain today.
With the challenges facing the country so serious, the people fed up with the backbiting, backstabbing and lack of seriousness of our political parties, Kemi was given irrefutable evidence of what would happen and she acted very decisively.
Meanwhile, Badenoch is expected to address the media later this morning. Stay tuned for that when it drops.
important events
Nick Timothy also said many politicians “lack seriousness” following the departure of his shadow cabinet predecessor Robert Jenrick to Reform UK.
Speaking to GB News, the new shadow justice secretary said he did not recognize Jenrick’s description of the Conservative party in his speech at a press conference on Thursday.
Timothy said:
One of the things I thought was really important about yesterday was the contrast between Kemi’s leadership as someone who acted decisively and as someone who took these challenges very seriously. [which the country faces]and the sense of backbiting and backstabbing and lack of seriousness we see in so many politicians.
We actually saw this towards the end of our tenure in government, to be fair, ahead of the 2024 general election.
We see it every day in a Labor government, in the constant speculation about the Prime Minister’s future, in the constant U-turns, in the constant clamoring of Cabinet members for the top job. We also see this in the Reform Party.
But what Kemi showed was clarity of thought, strength of character, and that is the kind of leadership the country needs.
New shadow justice secretary apologizes after Jenrick leaves Reform
Hello and welcome to the UK politics liveblog with me, Tom Ambrose.
We start this morning with tracking and reaction Robert Jenrick dramatic dismissal conservatives and his subsequent – although not depressingly surprising – defection to Nigel Farage UK Reformation party.
Shadow justice minister was Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch He was a leadership rival and the bookies’ favorite after failing to make any impact in the polls.
Jenrick was sacked from the shadow cabinet and suspended from the Conservative party after Badenoch said he had been presented with “irrefutable evidence” that he was planning to defect.
And he did so just a few hours later, walking out as Farage’s last member of the Reform fold, packed with old Tories who they say are bringing Britain down, who are fast becoming the political equivalent of Trigger’s broom.
It sounds like this Nick Timothy He said he was “sad” at the way the Conservatives had handled things in the last few years in power.
The new shadow justice secretary told BBC Breakfast that it was clear the country was “disappointed by some of the events that have happened”.
When asked if he was upset, Timothy said:
As a Conservative, I have said I was sorry for the way the party has handled certain issues over the last few years, and I have been very clear about this since I was first elected 18 months ago.
The Conservative party will not move on and persuade people to vote for us in the numbers we need in the future unless we look them in the eye and say we understand why we lost the election.
Timothy added that Jenrick was “my friend” but that the public was fed up with the “backbiting and backstabbing” in politics.
He said:
Yes, Rob has been a friend of mine for a while. It is obviously disappointing that he has decided to move on, but the truth is that what we learned yesterday was a stark contrast between the Kemi Badenoch-led Conservatives and other parties and what they offer Britain today.
With the challenges facing the country so serious, the people fed up with the backbiting, backstabbing and lack of seriousness of our political parties, Kemi was given irrefutable evidence of what would happen and she acted very decisively.
Meanwhile, Badenoch is expected to address the media later this morning. Stay tuned for that when it drops.
