Robert Jenrick defects to Reform after Tory leader Kemi Badenoch sacks him

Former senior Tory Robert Jenrick has defected to Reform UK after being sacked by Kemi Badenoch.

The ex-Conservative leadership hopeful was dramatically ousted as shadow justice secretary and suspended from the Tory party on Thursday morning.

Just moments before his defection was announced, Ms Badenoch told Sky News political editor Beth Rigby many Tory and Reform people had been telling her Mr Jenrick was about to defect, but she "believed him when he said he wasn't going to" just a few days before.

However, she was shown "very clear evidence" in the form of a defection speech he was going to give.

"I think Reform needs to be looking at what kind of person it is they're taking in: someone who's very happy to hurt his colleagues," she added.

There was instant speculation Mr Jenrick was defecting to Reform after his sacking, but he remained quiet until moments before a Thursday afternoon Nigel Farage news conference, just posting on X: "It's time for the truth."

Mr Farage then announced Mr Jenrick was defecting to Reform, although he said he did not know that was going to happen hours before, as he thanked Ms Badenoch for speeding up Mr Jenrick's defection.

He welcomed Mr Jenrick to the stage, however, he did not appear straight away, and there were a few awkward minutes before he did.

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All the former Conservative MPs who have defected to Reform

The newest former Tory MP member of Reform then launched a scathing attack on the Tories, saying they "don't have the stomach for the radical change this country needs".

"I can't kid myself anymore," he said.

"The party hasn't changed and it won't."

He said both the Tories and Labour "broke Britain" and have no senior members with "the competence or the backbone needed to fix it".

Now Reform's seventh MP, he hit out at several Conservatives by name, saying his efforts as a Tory minister were "let down" by Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak.

He said current shadow chancellor Mel Stride "oversaw the explosion of the welfare bill" and accused shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel of creating the migration system "that enabled five million migrants to come here" - which he branded "the greatest failure of any British government in the post-war period".

"I can't - in good conscience - stick with a party that's failed so badly. That isn't sorry and hasn't changed," he said.

Mr Jenrick said he did not intend to call a by-election in his Newham constituency and said Mr Farage is the only person who should be prime minister at the next election.

Mr Farage admitted he had doubts about Mr Jenrick's political journey, from centrist Tory remainer to staunchly anti-immigration, but he was convinced over the summer that he had been "on a genuine journey, is viewing the country very differently".

The Reform leader said his resignation as immigration minister during the last government over the Rwanda policy not going far enough "really swung it" for him.

He said Mr Jenrick will be "joining our front line team" and said he thinks he will "bring a lot more people and voters to us".

Mr Farage revealed they had been in "advanced talks" about Mr Jenrick joining Reform, but it had not been planned for Thursday, or even this week or month.

Mr Jenrick said he did not know he was going to leave the Tories when he woke up on Thursday, but was resolved he would at some point, and said he can now get on with helping Mr Farage sooner.

The MP is the second senior Conservative to have defected to Reform this week, after ex-chancellor Nadhim Zahawi moved over on Monday.

Mr Farage said potential defectors have until the local elections on 7 May to switch to Reform.

"Don't think you're joining us on the back of a massive success on May 7th," he said.

(c) Sky News 2026: Robert Jenrick defects to Reform after Tory leader Kemi Badenoch sacks him