Tories gain on Reform in polls yet Badenoch struggles for approval February 3, 2026 The Conservatives have slightly narrowed Reform UK’s polling lead though Opposition leader Kemi Badenoch suffered a setback with a sharp decrease in approval ratings over the last month. The Tories now lead Labour by five percentage points and trail Nigel Farage’s party by eight points in City AM/Freshwater Strategy’s monthly poll. Reform UK enjoy 30 [...]
Jenrick’s defection was “a mistake”, senior Tory claims February 1, 2026 A member of the shadow cabinet has said Robert Jenrick’s defection from the Conservatives to Reform UK was “a mistake”, fuelled by “frustrated personal ambition”. Shadow home secretary, Chris Philp, said Jenrick’s decision to join Nigel Farage’s party came from his upset about not being named party leader. Speaking to Sky News’s Trevor Phillips, he [...]
Would it have killed Kemi to throw Tory centrists a bone? January 29, 2026 Speaking to City AM at the start of this week the former John Lewis boss and West Midlands mayor, Andy Street, insisted that the Tories can beat Reform if they embrace the centre-right and resist the urge to fight Nigel Farage on his own turf. The new vehicle launched to make this case is called [...]
Lib Dems: Starmer has gone ‘cap in hand’ to China despite spy threats January 28, 2026 Keir Starmer has been accused of going “cap in hand” to China, piling further criticism on the government’s trade ambitions with a country that has backed hacking operations against the UK. Liberal Democrats deputy leader Daisy Cooper demanded deputy prime minister David Lammy, who stood in for Starmer at PMQs, to name a “single consequence” [...]
In defence of Ruth Davidson, Andy Street and the Tory ‘wets’ January 27, 2026 The right has no path to victory without also winning back voters who defected from the Conservatives to the Liberal Democrats in 2024. Recent Tory defections to Reform have made that job easier for Kemi Badenoch, says Alys Denby Wet Wet Wet is the name of the musical outfit behind “Love is All Around”, which [...]
Suella Braverman defects to Reform UK January 26, 2026 Former home secretary Suella Braverman has defected to Reform UK, the latest transfer from the Conservative benches to Nigel Farage’s party. Braverman, a former Tory leadership contender, had been a critic of policy positions held by the Tories. She was not a member of Kemi Badenoch’s shadow cabinet. The total number of Reform MPs is [...]
Starmer: I will not yield to Trump January 21, 2026 Keir Starmer said President Trump’s tirade against the Chagos Islands deal was to “pressure” him to change tune on Greenland, adding he would “engage constructively” with the US administration and other allies. During Prime Minister’s Questions, Starmer defiantly defended his position on upholding Greenland’s sovereignty, suggesting Trump’s unexpected attack on Chagos in a Truth Social [...]
Reform defections mean Tories can get back to being the party of business January 20, 2026 With plans to nationalise key industries and even individual companies like Rolls-Royce, it’s clear that Reform are the party of the big state. Kemi Badenoch should reclaim the Conservative mantel as the party of business, says Oliver Dean On Sunday night, Andrew Rosindell became the latest Conservative to defect to Reform UK. He joined the [...]
Kemi Badenoch tells Tory MPs: Don’t damage us from within January 19, 2026 Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has warned backbenchers not to damage the party “from within” as she called a meeting of MPs on Monday afternoon to address defections to Reform UK. Last week, Robert Jenrick and Andrew Rosindell, the shadow minister for foreign affairs under Badenoch’s leadership, announced they had quit to join Nigel Farage’s Reform. [...]
Robert Jenrick was the last sign of life the Conservative party had January 19, 2026 In booting out her erstwhile rival, Badenoch may have won herself a day’s worth of positive headlines but has done deep damage to the Conservative Party. She has lost an effective media performer with a detailed policy brain and extensive government experience: exactly the sort of battle-hardened but repentant ex-minister Reform were crying out for, [...]