Former Conservative minister Robert Jenrick has launched a scathing attack on his old party, stating that its unwillingness to expel former Prime Minister Liz Truss is definitive proof that the Tories have not genuinely reformed. Jenrick, who defected to Reform UK last week, made the comments in a newspaper article and subsequent radio interview.
A 'Broken' Britain and a Divided Party
Writing in The Times, Jenrick reiterated his central critique that Britain is in a state of disrepair. "Not beyond repair, but broken today as never before in my lifetime," he asserted. He revealed that Tory leader Kemi Badenoch had told a shadow cabinet meeting that party members did not share this bleak assessment of the nation.
Jenrick framed this disagreement as the core philosophical battle in current politics: the choice between accepting managed decline or embracing radical change. He argued that the Conservative leadership's refusal to acknowledge the scale of the problem meant they could never begin to fix it.
The Liz Truss Litmus Test
Jenrick pointed to the party's handling of Liz Truss as the clearest indicator of its reluctance to change. He highlighted the profound damage caused by her short-lived premiership in the autumn of 2022.
"In 42 days, she single-handedly demolished the party’s reputation for fiscal credibility, undermined the country’s credit ratings and forced many to re-evaluate their retirement," he wrote. He posed a pointed question: "If the party doesn’t have the balls to kick out Truss, will it really have the gumption to take on the vested interests that stand in the way of all the change our country needs?"
His conclusion was stark: "Sadly and very painfully, I concluded that it didn’t." Speaking to Times Radio, he accused Badenoch and the Conservatives of having "their heads in the sand."
Conservative Defence and a Competing Vision
The Conservative response was one of unity and optimism in the face of defections and poor polling. Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge praised Badenoch's "amazing leadership" during a difficult period and rejected the 'broken Britain' narrative.
"I’m proud to be British, proud of my country and proud of my party," Cartlidge stated. "If others want to desert the ship, that’s up to them." He expressed commitment to a party he believes will emerge stronger.
In a direct rebuttal published in The Daily Telegraph, Kemi Badenoch set out a more positive vision, deliberately creating a dividing line with Reform UK's message. "Ours is still one of the most successful, resilient and influential countries on Earth," she wrote.
She argued that telling people their country is finished "does not empower the British people – it drags them down." While acknowledging real and worsening problems, she insisted: "Britain is not broken. We are a great country with deep reserves of strength, talent and resilience."
The political rupture was underscored on Sunday when Andrew Rosindell became the second Conservative MP to defect to Reform UK within a week, following Jenrick's own departure on Thursday. Jenrick was dismissed as shadow justice secretary and suspended from the Conservative Party just hours before announcing his move to Nigel Farage's party.
