Reform vs Conservatives

I look upon the current Conservative Party at Westminster as little more than a bunch of closet LibDems with a thin coating of Tory blue to try and cover their tracks. There are very few actual Conservatives amongst it but Robert Jenrick had clearly evolved into one. So when he was sacked by Kemi Badenoch yesterday for “disloyalty” I had to laugh. The Conservatives have been disloyal to their electorate for 14 years (at least) so it is a bit rich to hear this coming from Badenoch!

Conservative MPs then toured the TV studios explaining that this was a good day for the Conservative Party and that Kemi has shown what a courageous leader she was! Talk about delusional! Jenrick was arguably their greatest media asset and narrowly lost the leadership content to Badenoch last year. In no sane universe can this promoted defection to Reform be seen as anything as a disaster. I agree with Nigel Farage when he says that on May 8th this year the Conservative Party will become virtually extinct and utterly irrelevant as an electoral force. What does Kemi do them? Does she shrug and just carry on regardless - which seems likely at this point? Could she gain political infamy as the final leader of the Conservative Party?

As for Reform, this is just more added grist to their mill. Jenrick is an asset and a very effective communicator. His current political instincts seem pretty decent and his social media work is tremendous. Obviously this strengthens Reform but it also raises a few questions. Will Nigel Farage be able to work with the energetic Jenrick? Will egos be able to cope? In this sense, it’s a good test for Farage. If Reform are to be a future Government, it needs competent people. Jenrick, unlike Zahawai, is such a person. Who knows if Reform will attract any further competent Conservatives? Suella Braverman must be feeling isolated these days days?

In the final analysis, the political centre of right wing politics has shifted from the Conservatives to Reform. I don’t see it moving back.