The political career of Robert Jenrick within the Conservative Party has reached a dramatic and unceremonious conclusion. The former home secretary was today expelled from the party and removed from his shadow justice role by leader Kemi Badenoch.
A Swift Expulsion Following Defection Evidence
Kemi Badenoch took decisive action after being presented with what she described as clear evidence that Mr Jenrick was planning to defect from the struggling Tories. This move ends months of speculation that the MP, who was narrowly defeated by Mrs Badenoch in the late 2024 leadership contest, was poised to join Nigel Farage's Reform UK.
Mr Jenrick had long been tipped by Westminster insiders to abandon the Conservatives. His recent behaviour, including making several warm overtures towards Mr Farage even when it contradicted the official party line, had raised eyebrows among colleagues and commentators alike.
A Checkered Ministerial Career Marked by Controversy
Jenrick's journey in government was tumultuous. Having won the Newark seat in a 2014 by-election, he rose under Theresa May to become a Treasury minister in January 2018. His ascent continued under Boris Johnson, who appointed him Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government in July 2019.
However, his time in cabinet ended in controversy. He was sacked after a string of damaging incidents, most notably the unlawful approval of a £1 billion housing development for Tory donor Richard Desmond. The permission was granted the day before a new community levy would have cost Mr Desmond's company an extra £40 million, leading Jenrick to later quash his own decision, admitting it was 'unlawful' due to 'apparent bias'.
Further controversy erupted during the Covid lockdown when it emerged he had travelled 150 miles from London to his Herefordshire home, despite having a £2.5 million flat near Parliament. He claimed it was his family's main home, though his website at the time stated he lived in Southwell near Newark and in London.
From Leadership Hopeful to Party Outcast
After his cabinet exit, Jenrick returned briefly under Liz Truss at the Department of Health before being appointed Immigration Minister by Rishi Sunak in October 2022. In this role, he made headlines by ordering the removal of Mickey Mouse artwork at an asylum centre, arguing it made the UK look too 'welcoming'.
His resignation from that post in protest over the Rwanda scheme transformed him into one of Sunak's most strident backbench critics. His leadership ambitions were ultimately thwarted by Mrs Badenoch in late 2024.
In recent months, his actions increasingly signalled a break from the party. In April, he was recorded proposing a 'coalition' to unite Tory and Reform UK voters to prevent Keir Starmer from 'sailing through the middle'. Just six weeks ago, however, he publicly denied plans to leave, telling Times Radio: 'I'm not going anywhere.'
His personal life and background also drew attention. The father-of-three, who attended Cambridge, often highlighted his working-class roots—his father worked at an iron foundry in the Black Country. He is married to lawyer Michal Berkner, whom he met at a New York law firm that has worked for oligarchs including Roman Abramovich.
Jenrick's expulsion underscores the deep fractures within the Conservative Party as it battles to retain voters tempted by Reform UK. It closes a turbulent chapter for a politician whose ambition was clear from a young age; as a 19-year-old Cambridge undergraduate, he told a student magazine he hoped to be 'a millionaire businessman fighting my first election to Parliament' within a decade.
