In a dramatic political defection, former Conservative minister Robert Jenrick has crossed the floor to join Reform UK. The move came hours after he was sacked from the Tory frontbench by party leader Kemi Badenoch on Thursday 15 January 2026.
A Sacking and a Stunning Defection
Mrs Badenoch stated she had removed Mr Jenrick from the shadow cabinet, withdrawn the party whip, and suspended his membership after being presented with "clear, irrefutable evidence" that the Newark MP was secretly planning to defect in a manner designed to inflict maximum damage on his colleagues. The Conservatives even released extracts of a speech they claimed was proof of his intentions.
At a Westminster press conference later that day, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage confirmed Mr Jenrick's arrival, quipping that he would "buy Kemi lunch next week and say thank you". Mr Farage described the former justice secretary as "by far the most popular figure" on the ConservativeHome website, with a 60% approval rating, and suggested the sacking had helped realign the centre-right in British politics.
Jenrick's Scathing Attack on 'Broken Britain'
After an awkward delay—which Tory sources claimed was due to him rewriting his speech after their leak—Mr Jenrick took to the stage. He launched a fierce critique of both major parties, declaring "Britain is in decline".
He cited a litany of national problems:
- Rising migration levels
- A backlogged court system
- Overflowing prisons
- A diminished army
"Both Labour and the Conservatives broke Britain, and both are now dominated by those without the competence or the backbone needed to fix it," Mr Jenrick asserted. He accused the Conservatives of having ramped up mass migration after 2019 and claimed his former party "don't have the stomach for the radical change this country needs".
Political Fallout and Immediate Aftermath
The defection triggered immediate political repercussions. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer questioned why it took Mrs Badenoch "so long" to dismiss Mr Jenrick, whom he accused of making "toxic comments to try and divide our country".
Meanwhile, the Conservative leader moved swiftly to fill the gap in her team, appointing West Sussex MP and former Theresa May adviser Nick Timothy to Mr Jenrick's former shadow cabinet role. The incident marks a significant moment of turbulence for the Conservatives and a major coup for Nigel Farage's Reform UK, as the battle for the centre-right vote intensifies.
