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The Guardian
04-06-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
James Cleverly takes on Kemi Badenoch over decision to ditch net zero targets
James Cleverly has taken direct aim at Kemi Badenoch's decision to ditch net zero targets by criticising what he called 'neo-luddites' on the right who seem scared of using green technologies to protect the environment. The senior Conservative MP, who lost to Badenoch in last year's Tory leadership race, said it was a false choice to believe the UK had to choose between economic growth and protecting the environment. Badenoch has argued current net zero targets will harm the economy. Cleverly's comments, to be made in a speech on Wednesday evening to the Conservative Environment Network campaign group, also take aim at what he called 'the negative left, suspicious of technology, believing things were better before the car'. However, it is his coded if very obvious rebuff to Badenoch's policy switch that will get attention given Cleverly has largely lain low since he was unexpectedly ejected from the Tory leadership race in the final round of MPs' voting after an apparent mix-up in tactical voting. In March, Badenoch announced that a Conservative government she led would ditch net zero targets put in place by Theresa May, saying they were 'impossible' and would lead to higher energy prices. At the speech in London, Cleverly will dismiss this idea, without naming his party leader, condemning 'the negative right' who, he said, had a motto of: 'All change, even for the better, is a bad idea.' His speech will argue the Conservatives should embrace optimism and technological innovation on green issues: 'The United Kingdom has a proud history of innovation. From the Norfolk crop rotation system, the steam engine, to the world wide web, we have been at the forefront of technological advancement. 'We can lead once again, this time in the realm of green technology … The UK is advancing rapidly in renewable energy generation, clean transport, and carbon capture. But we must push further, faster, and smarter. 'We [the Conservative party] must embrace a future where environmental policies encourage investment in new technologies, support the development of new industries, and create the jobs of tomorrow.' Cleverly adds: 'The idea that we must choose between a strong economy and protecting our environment is outdated. The future I believe in is one where these two aims go hand in hand, driving innovation and opportunity. That's the future I want for the United Kingdom, and for the world.' The speech marks the most high-profile call yet from a senior Tory MP for the party to stop chasing Reform UK on policy, with Nigel Farage's party taking an even stronger line against net zero, including some of his MPs even questioning the basics of climate change science. Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Badenoch became leader after defeating Robert Jenrick, the shadow justice secretary, in a vote of Conservative members after the party's MPs had whittled the list of candidates down to two. Cleverly, who was the shadow home secretary and the final remaining candidate from the party's centre, had become favourite to win but was eliminated after what some Tories speculated was a botched attempt by his supporters to make sure he faced Jenrick in the runoff rather than Badenoch. While Badenoch has since faced limited public dissent from her MPs, in private many are deeply unimpressed by her tenure so far, during which the party has slumped in the polls and developed little in the way of policy.
Sky News
28-05-2025
- Business
- Sky News
'She's a goner': Dominic Cummings predicts timing of Kemi Badenoch's downfall
Kemi Badenoch will be gone as Tory leader within a year - and there are plots already under way to oust her, Dominic Cummings has said. The former Number 10 aide also claimed the Conservative Party "might be dead". His remarks came in a wide-ranging interview with Sky News, in which the controversial figure, who served as Boris Johnson's chief adviser from 2019 to 2020, said Nigel Farage could "definitely" become the next prime minister. On Ms Badenoch, who won the Tory leadership race last November, Mr Cummings said: " Kemi is going to go, probably this year. "There's already people who are organising to get rid of her, and I think that that will work. If it doesn't work this year, it will definitely happen after next May. "She's a goner, so there's going to be a big transition there." 0:58 In a damning indictment of the party he served, he said: "It's quite possible the Tories have just, kind of, crossed the event horizon and actually aren't salvageable. "Like, everyone sort of assumes that because they've always been around, then somehow there must be at least one last chance for them to turn things around, but it's possible that chance is in their past and doesn't exist. "It might be dead." Politics Hub: Follow live updates from Westminster Mr Cummings revealed he has held meetings with Mr Farage and advised him on how to go from "one man and an iPhone" to entering Downing Street. Asked if the Reform UK leader could be prime minister, he said: "It could definitely happen now, yeah, because the old system's just so completely broken. "If he does what I'm suggesting, and actually sets out a path for how Reform is going to change, how Reform is going to bring in people, how it's structurally going to alter, what it's going to build, how it is going to do policy, how it can recruit MPs, etc. "If he does that, then there'll be a huge surge of interest and support into the whole thing." 1:37 'One man and an iPhone' He added: "Reform has been a one-man band. It's been Nigel and an iPhone. "They can win 50, 100, 150 seats with Reform as Nigel and an iPhone. "But they can't win an overall general election and have a plan for government and have a serious team able to take over in Downing Street and govern and control Whitehall with one man and an iPhone." However, the ex-Downing Street aide was also scathing about Mr Farage's personal appeal, saying it was his party, not him, that had become an outlet for anti-establishment feeling. "It's not exactly correlated with what people think about Nigel himself," he said. "Reform is a vehicle for people to say: 'We despise you, Westminster. We hate both the old parties, we hate Whitehall, we hate the old media, we hate the whole f***ing lot of you.' "And Farage going up in the polls is the expression of that core feeling." Mr Cummings left his Downing Street role in November 2020 after attracting controversy during the coronavirus lockdown when he drove to Barnard Castle in County Durham and claimed he was testing his eyesight.
Sky News
28-05-2025
- Business
- Sky News
'She's a goner': Dominic Cummings says Kemi Badenoch will be ousted within a year
Kemi Badenoch will be gone as Tory leader within a year - and there are plots already under way to oust her, Dominic Cummings has said. The former Number 10 aide also claimed the Conservative Party "might be dead". His remarks came in a wide-ranging interview with Sky News, in which the controversial figure, who served as Boris Johnson's chief adviser from 2019 to 2020, said Nigel Farage could "definitely" become the next prime minister. On Ms Badenoch, who won the Tory leadership race last November, Mr Cummings said: " Kemi is going to go, probably this year. "There's already people who are organising to get rid of her, and I think that that will work. If it doesn't work this year, it will definitely happen after next May. "She's a goner, so there's going to be a big transition there." 0:58 In a damning indictment of the party he served, he said: "It's quite possible the Tories have just, kind of, crossed the event horizon and actually aren't salvageable. "Like, everyone sort of assumes that because they've always been around, then somehow there must be at least one last chance for them to turn things around, but it's possible that chance is in their past and doesn't exist. "It might be dead." Politics Hub: Follow live updates from Westminster Mr Cummings revealed he has held meetings with Mr Farage and advised him on how to go from "one man and an iPhone" to entering Downing Street. Asked if the Reform UK leader could be prime minister, he said: "It could definitely happen now, yeah, because the old system's just so completely broken. "If he does what I'm suggesting, and actually sets out a path for how Reform is going to change, how Reform is going to bring in people, how it's structurally going to alter, what it's going to build, how it is going to do policy, how it can recruit MPs, etc. "If he does that, then there'll be a huge surge of interest and support into the whole thing." 1:37 'One man and an iPhone' He added: "Reform has been a one-man band. It's been Nigel and an iPhone. "They can win 50, 100, 150 seats with Reform as Nigel and an iPhone. "But they can't win an overall general election and have a plan for government and have a serious team able to take over in Downing Street and govern and control Whitehall with one man and an iPhone." However, the ex-Downing Street aide was also scathing about Mr Farage's personal appeal, saying it was his party, not him, that had become an outlet for anti-establishment feeling. "It's not exactly correlated with what people think about Nigel himself," he said. "Reform is a vehicle for people to say: 'We despise you, Westminster. We hate both the old parties, we hate Whitehall, we hate the old media, we hate the whole f***ing lot of you.' "And Farage going up in the polls is the expression of that core feeling." Mr Cummings left his Downing Street role in November 2020 after attracting controversy during the coronavirus lockdown when he drove to Barnard Castle in County Durham and claimed he was testing his eyesight.
Telegraph
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Tory MPs tell Boris Johnson: We don't want you back
Conservative MPs have said they do not want Boris Johnson to return as Tory leader. Senior figures said there was no 'appetite' among the party's 121 MPs for the former prime minister to make a comeback, adding that he was unpopular with floating voters and the political landscape had changed. Some are said to have threatened to quit the party if Mr Johnson were to be readmitted. It comes amid rumours that he could be considering a Donald Trump-style return to frontline politics. The Conservatives are floundering in the polls under Kemi Badenoch. Earlier this month, YouGov put them in fourth place behind Reform UK, Labour and the Liberal Democrats. Backers of Mr Johnson said he was a proven election-winner and could see off the threat of Reform because of his cross-party appeal, but current Tory MPs have said he should not return. One said: 'I don't think there's a lot of enthusiasm amongst this parliamentary party, particularly amongst the new MPs who obviously never served with him.' They added that there would always be an 'affection' for Mr Johnson among Tories because of his huge electoral success in 2019, but said: 'I don't think there is an appetite for him to come back, given that he is actually very unpopular with floating voters.' A shadow Cabinet minister said that they could not think 'of a single one' of their colleagues who thought Mr Johnson returning to the Conservative Party fold would be a good thing. Iain Martin, a political columnist, told the Not Another One podcast last week that two Conservatives MPs had made it known they would 'not stick around' if Mr Johnson became party leader again. Mrs Badenoch refused to be drawn on whether the former PM should return to politics, telling GB News on Sunday: 'I love Boris. He sends me lots of messages, gives me lots of advice, like Iain Duncan Smith, like David Cameron. 'I have great people who have been in this situation before, who dealt with difficult times. So it's up to him what he wants to do.' Allies of Mr Johnson outside Parliament, however, sought to encourage his return. One said he should be put back onto the Tory candidate list and put forward for a by-election to show he was still an 'election winner'. Another said that if the former prime minister were to fight a by-election and beat Reform, it would show he was the leadership candidate to see off the threat from Nigel Farage's party. But another Johnson ally said that although there was a 'Boris-shaped hole' in British politics, the idea that Tory MPs would trust him enough to have him back in the party 'is just too far-fetched'. Mr Johnson was forced to resign as prime minister in 2022 after scores of his MPs withdrew their support after a series of scandals. Revelations of lockdown-breaking parties in Downing Street on his watch, and the handling of allegations of misconduct by Chris Pincher, the party deputy chief whip, contributed to Mr Johnson's downfall. But a survey conducted by Ipsos last week found that the net favourability of Mr Johnson outstripped that of Mrs Badenoch at 26 per cent to 17 per cent. He also proved more popular than Robert Jenrick, who ran against Mrs Badenoch for the Tory leadership, at 16 per cent. He was beaten only by Mr Farage, with a favourability rating of 31 per cent, in the poll.
Daily Mail
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Boris Johnson's allies 'urging him to make bombshell return' as Tory leader with party rebels 'considering options' for ousting Kemi Badenoch
's allies are trying to convince the former prime minister to make a bombshell return as Tory leader, it has been revealed. Details of a plot to reinstall the ex-premier to the political frontline have emerged as pressure piles on current party leader Kemi Badenoch. She suffered devastating local election results at the start of this month, when the Conservatives lost more than 600 councillors and all of the councils they controlled. Mrs Badenoch, who has worried some of her MPs with her performances at PMQs, has since seen a YouGov poll show her party are now a humiliating fourth in the polls. The survey found the Tories trailing far behind Reform UK and Labour, while even being overtaken by the Liberal Democrats. Mrs Badenoch was only elected Conservative leader in November when she fought off rival Robert Jenrick to replace Rishi Sunak. This means, under the party's rules, she cannot face a formal confidence vote among Tory MPs until 2 November this year. But it has been reported that some Conservatives, who want to move faster to bring in a new leader, are considering alternative options to oust Mrs Badenoch. Details of a plot to reinstall the ex-premier to the political frontline have emerged as pressure piles on current party leader Kemi Badenoch Since leaving Downing Street in 2022, Mr Johnson - who has welcomed his fourth child with wife Carrie - has continued to make significant interventions on issues such as the Ukraine war and Brexit. A senior Tory told The Sun on Sunday: 'Some of the old gang around Boris Johnson are back texting and in talks to get him to return. 'The feeling is he is the only man who can take on Nigel Farage and win. They want to bring back Boris.' Another Conservative said: 'Team Boris are talking again. There are even some people in Tory HQ who are moonlighting on Project Boris.' Earlier this month, a More in Common poll found Mr Johnson is the only potential party leader under which the Tories poll higher that Mr Farage's Reform. According to the Sunday Times, some supporters of Mr Johnson - who is no longer an MP - believe Tory rules could be altered to allow him to lead the party from outside Parliament until the next general election. The newspaper also reported on different options being considered by those who want to move against Mrs Badenoch before November. These include a confidence vote among grassroots Tory members at the party's national convention to shame Mrs Badenoch into resigning; a rule change to allow MPs to force a confidence vote before November; an open letter to the media by more than half the MPs calling for Badenoch to go; or mass resignations by members of the shadow cabinet. Guto Harri, who was Mr Johnson's former director of communications, told Times Radio yesterday: 'I think we inevitably are heading for another leadership challenge. 'And the danger there is that the party makes the wrong decision again and chooses somebody like Robert Jenrick, who's a pale imitation of what Kemi Badenoch is trying to be a pale imitation of, which is Nigel Farage and Reform. 'If we had a directly-elected presidency, and you could appeal to people over the heads of the Conservative Party, frankly, then Boris would be plotting a return.' But Lord Gove, the former Cabinet minister, warned against ditching Mrs Badenoch as Tory leader. He said: 'The people who are anxious to get rid of Kemi don't themselves have a convincing answer of what the Conservative Party should do. 'And I actually think that if the Conservative Party were to do that, it would confirm even further a reputation in people's minds, that we were only interested in ourselves, and not actually interested in what was good for the whole country.'
