Braverman’s defection exposes a different Tory malaise
There are a number of interesting new stats that now apply to Reform UK.
Following Suella Braverman’s defection, the party has eight MPs – half of them are Tories who left for the turquoise blue in this Parliament alone. They have more of Liz Truss’s cabinet in their team than Kemi Badenoch has in her shadow cabinet.
Of Boris Johnson’s ministerial team Reform can now claim they have his former chancellor, communities secretary, culture secretary, attorney general, political secretary, skills minister, Northern Powerhouse minister, health minister, parliamentary private secretary, assistant whip and a Scotland Office minister.
Braverman’s defection to many Tories came as little surprise. One MP tells me: “I haven’t seen her all year.” Another, one of the 2024 intake, adds: “I honestly think I have only met her once, that is how little she is around.” But yet she had just placed as Conservative backbencher of the year by our ConservativeHome panel.
It marks quite the end to a political friendship for the former Home Secretary and Kemi Badenoch, who once organised Braverman’s hen do. The deterioration began some time ago with leaked comments of Badenoch’s from the first meeting of the shadow cabinet, accusing her of having a “very public” nervous breakdown.
In her move to Reform, the long-time Tory politician remarked she felt “like I’ve come home”. Braverman may well feel like it given how many former colleagues she has now joined. But it remains an interesting decision given her Fareham and Waterlooville seat is not sewn up with a Reform UK defection – predictions on Electoral Calculus have it remaining Tory.
There is yet more awkwardness for Reform to manage, given their leader Nigel Farage having pledged in the Daily Mail that Reform wouldn’t take Braverman over concerns for the party’s image and Zia Yusuf the party’s policy chief writing on X of a government cover up with Braverman at the helm as Home Secretary. Quite the choice to then hire both of those named.
It does bring on the inevitable question of whether Reform is Tories 2.0, but the recycled, rejected version – and to this Farage has said: “We are taking people who tried their best to fight the system at the time and they admit they failed.” Adding that he won’t be accepting the likes of Boris Johnson or Priti Patel.
The Tories were initially punchy with their statement, telling journalists that Braverman was “clearly very unhappy” and left following “mental health issues”, only to later say that the released comment was meant to be a draft – reissuing the statement without the targeted mental health comment barb that sparked much ire. I received messages from a Reform source saying “they will have to retract it” and “apologise”.
But LOTO were especially pleased with a …
There are a number of interesting new stats that now apply to Reform UK.
Following Suella Braverman’s defection, the party has eight MPs – half of them are Tories who left for the turquoise blue in this Parliament alone. They have more of Liz Truss’s cabinet in their team than Kemi Badenoch has in her shadow cabinet.
Of Boris Johnson’s ministerial team Reform can now claim they have his former chancellor, communities secretary, culture secretary, attorney general, political secretary, skills minister, Northern Powerhouse minister, health minister, parliamentary private secretary, assistant whip and a Scotland Office minister.
Braverman’s defection to many Tories came as little surprise. One MP tells me: “I haven’t seen her all year.” Another, one of the 2024 intake, adds: “I honestly think I have only met her once, that is how little she is around.” But yet she had just placed as Conservative backbencher of the year by our ConservativeHome panel.
It marks quite the end to a political friendship for the former Home Secretary and Kemi Badenoch, who once organised Braverman’s hen do. The deterioration began some time ago with leaked comments of Badenoch’s from the first meeting of the shadow cabinet, accusing her of having a “very public” nervous breakdown.
In her move to Reform, the long-time Tory politician remarked she felt “like I’ve come home”. Braverman may well feel like it given how many former colleagues she has now joined. But it remains an interesting decision given her Fareham and Waterlooville seat is not sewn up with a Reform UK defection – predictions on Electoral Calculus have it remaining Tory.
There is yet more awkwardness for Reform to manage, given their leader Nigel Farage having pledged in the Daily Mail that Reform wouldn’t take Braverman over concerns for the party’s image and Zia Yusuf the party’s policy chief writing on X of a government cover up with Braverman at the helm as Home Secretary. Quite the choice to then hire both of those named.
It does bring on the inevitable question of whether Reform is Tories 2.0, but the recycled, rejected version – and to this Farage has said: “We are taking people who tried their best to fight the system at the time and they admit they failed.” Adding that he won’t be accepting the likes of Boris Johnson or Priti Patel.
The Tories were initially punchy with their statement, telling journalists that Braverman was “clearly very unhappy” and left following “mental health issues”, only to later say that the released comment was meant to be a draft – reissuing the statement without the targeted mental health comment barb that sparked much ire. I received messages from a Reform source saying “they will have to retract it” and “apologise”.
But LOTO were especially pleased with a …
Braverman’s defection exposes a different Tory malaise
There are a number of interesting new stats that now apply to Reform UK.
Following Suella Braverman’s defection, the party has eight MPs – half of them are Tories who left for the turquoise blue in this Parliament alone. They have more of Liz Truss’s cabinet in their team than Kemi Badenoch has in her shadow cabinet.
Of Boris Johnson’s ministerial team Reform can now claim they have his former chancellor, communities secretary, culture secretary, attorney general, political secretary, skills minister, Northern Powerhouse minister, health minister, parliamentary private secretary, assistant whip and a Scotland Office minister.
Braverman’s defection to many Tories came as little surprise. One MP tells me: “I haven’t seen her all year.” Another, one of the 2024 intake, adds: “I honestly think I have only met her once, that is how little she is around.” But yet she had just placed as Conservative backbencher of the year by our ConservativeHome panel.
It marks quite the end to a political friendship for the former Home Secretary and Kemi Badenoch, who once organised Braverman’s hen do. The deterioration began some time ago with leaked comments of Badenoch’s from the first meeting of the shadow cabinet, accusing her of having a “very public” nervous breakdown.
In her move to Reform, the long-time Tory politician remarked she felt “like I’ve come home”. Braverman may well feel like it given how many former colleagues she has now joined. But it remains an interesting decision given her Fareham and Waterlooville seat is not sewn up with a Reform UK defection – predictions on Electoral Calculus have it remaining Tory.
There is yet more awkwardness for Reform to manage, given their leader Nigel Farage having pledged in the Daily Mail that Reform wouldn’t take Braverman over concerns for the party’s image and Zia Yusuf the party’s policy chief writing on X of a government cover up with Braverman at the helm as Home Secretary. Quite the choice to then hire both of those named.
It does bring on the inevitable question of whether Reform is Tories 2.0, but the recycled, rejected version – and to this Farage has said: “We are taking people who tried their best to fight the system at the time and they admit they failed.” Adding that he won’t be accepting the likes of Boris Johnson or Priti Patel.
The Tories were initially punchy with their statement, telling journalists that Braverman was “clearly very unhappy” and left following “mental health issues”, only to later say that the released comment was meant to be a draft – reissuing the statement without the targeted mental health comment barb that sparked much ire. I received messages from a Reform source saying “they will have to retract it” and “apologise”.
But LOTO were especially pleased with a …
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