Kemi Badenoch has lashed out at Reform UK during an emergency 1922 Committee meeting following the defection of three Tory bigwigs in less than a week.
The Conservative leader convened the meeting for her 117 MPs after the Tories continued to haemorrhage top personnel to Nigel Farage’s outfit.
After suffering two high-profile defections in just four days, namely Robert Jenrick and Andrew Rosindell, Mrs Badenoch arranged the crunch meeting with backbench MPs.
Addressing the assembled loyalists, the North West Essex MP took aim at her turquoise rivals and their rallying cry that Britain is broken.
“There is a lot to fix in this country,” Mrs Badenoch acknowledged.
“A lot of stuff isn’t working, a lot is broken, but the whole country isn’t broken beyond repair.
“We need to show hope, aspiration, and that we can fix problems – we are brave enough to take tough decisions, and we are competent enough to deliver.
“Where Reform is negative about our country, we will be fuelled by positivity,” she insisted.
Kemi Badenoch has addressed loyalists on Reform at the 1922 Committee
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“We have the plan, the team and the vision to deliver a right-wing solution to our country’s problems.”
Mrs Badenoch also addressed Nigel Farage’s claim that the “centre-right is uniting” behind Reform.
The Tory leader stressed: “We are not moving leftwards, we are the party of the right and will always be a party of the right.
“We have to push back, don’t let other people speak for us. People don’t want incremental managerialism.
The Tory leader accused Reform of being ‘negative’
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“They want a vision,” Mrs Badenoch said.
To that end, she then switched her attention to the recent bruising defections, hitting out at Robert Jenrick in particular.
The Tory leader claimed his decision to join Reform was based “not on ideology, but personal ambition”.
Mrs Badenoch clarified that “we want to win” but for what she considered the right reasons.
Mrs Badenoch also claimed Robert Jenrick had joined Reform over ‘personal ambition’
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“The question is, what are we winning for? That’s the story we want to tell.
“I want to renew and rebuild the Conservative Party – not just be the PM,” Mrs Badenoch declared.
Ahead of the meeting, the Tory leader sent a letter to backbenchers in which she wrote that “differences of opinion are part of a healthy party… those who do not want to be part of the Tory party are free to make other choices”.
“Those who cannot be part of a Conservative Party that is changing in this way are free to make other choices. Those who want to undermine or destroy the party will be dealt with firmly and fairly.
“There will be no hard feelings about that as they will create space for those who share our values and purpose,”