Kemi Badenoch has committed to withdrawing the UK from the European Convention on Human Rights if the Conservatives win the next General Election.
The Tory leader warned that the failure to control Britain’s borders has pushed the country to “breaking point” ahead of the 2025 Conservative Party Conference, held in Manchester this weekend.
She claims her party offer a vision of “authentic conservatism”, describing Reform UK’s Nigel Farage as a “one-man band” who offered a “pastiche” of Tory values.
Speaking on GB News, broadcaster Duncan Barkes described the Tory conference as “make or break” for Ms Badenoch’s leadership, adding that she needs to “rally her troops” or the Conservative Party will be in “serious trouble”.
Ms Badenoch has been under protection from a leadership challenge despite concerns over her public opinion in the polls.
However, this period is set to expire next month, with concerns growing about the local elections in May.
A confidence vote is triggered when at least 15 per cent of Conservative MPs request one by writing to the chairman of the party’s backbench 1922 committee.
She refused to say whether she would resign if the elections went badly, but said: “I would put more money on Keir Starmer losing his job before I lose mine.”
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Kemi Badenoch has committed to withdrawing the UK from the European Convention on Human Rights if the Conservatives win the next General Election
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Ms Badenoch, who previously said she would not commit to leaving the ECHR, has now confirmed that it is her party’s policy for Britain to leave the convention, following a review commissioned by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar KC, a former justice minister, into the legality and practicality.
Lord Wolfson concluded that leaving the convention was “the only way” to meet Ms Badenoch’s five tests, which include ensuring “sovereign” control of Britain’s borders and stopping foreigners claiming benefits.
The Tory leader said: “Our country is getting to breaking point because we are not controlling our borders. People are unhappy.
“If you cannot deliver the basics for your people, because of a convention which is out of your control, then you should leave.
“It is not about wanting to leave the ECHR, it is about wanting to make sure we can run the country for the people of this country, not for everybody else who turns up on our shores.”
Kemi Badenoch has now confirmed that it is her party’s policy for Britain to leave the convention
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James Cleverly, the Shadow Housing Secretary, supported the decision but objected to how it had been presented., allegedly saying to colleagues: “The process is ‘accept this or f*** off’.”
Speaking on Reform’s leader, Nigel Farage, Ms Badenoch said: “He is saying we will leave the ECHR and work it out later.
“I am going to go to the public and say we are leaving the ECHR and here is what we are going to do.
“These rights have existed long before the Human Rights Act, long before the European Convention on Human Rights.
“I want to make sure that it is the democratic parliament, what people vote for, not an international court that is expanding the interpretations well beyond the original intention.”
She told the Times that, despite the ECHR being referenced in the post-Brexit trade agreement with the European Union, that “There is no reason why we cannot trade and co-operate and buy and sell because of the ECHR.”, adding: “It would be quite an extraordinary thing for them to do.”
Kemi Badenoch said that Nigel Farage, who has also promised to leave the convention, did not have a plan
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Nearly half of voters (45 per cent) think Ms Badenoch has done badly as leader, polling from YouGov found, while just one in five (20 per cent) think she has done well.
Under her leadership, 18 ex-Tories have defected to Reform UK, with former Defence Minister Sarah Atherton defecting on Thursday.
A Reform UK spokesman said: “The Conservatives had 14 years in government to leave the ECHR. Since then, it’s taken them 14 months to even decide what their policy is.
“Nobody trusts a single word they say anymore. The Conservative Party is finished.”