Badenoch warns Tory MPs about people trying to undermine party from within'

"I ask everyone to satisfy themselves that their staff are acting in line with our strategy and values, she wrote. Undermining the party from within, whether by MPs or by staff, is unacceptable. Badenoch was due to meet groups of MPs on Monday and speak to the entire parliamentary party on Wednesday, in the wake of three defections in a week, two involving sitting MPs."

"After Nadhim Zahawi, the former MP and cabinet minister, defected to Reform a week ago, on Thursday Jenrick, who was shadow justice secretary, also joined Reform when Badenoch sacked him for having secret talks with Nigel Farage. On Sunday, another sitting MP, Andrew Rosindell, quit for Reform, citing worries about the deal to hand sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius as his main reason."

"Some of our former colleagues opining on social media seem to have taken these defections as a signal that the party is shifting (or should) ideologically away from the right. This is a serious misreading of the situation, she said. These defections are not about policy differences or ideology; they are about character. We are THE party of the right and must remain so."

The Conservative party must avoid psychodrama, intrigue and damaging splits. A small number of Tory staffers have been briefing against the party while claiming to be Conservative sources. MPs were asked to ensure staff act in line with party strategy and values; undermining from within is unacceptable. Recent defections include Nadhim Zahawi, Robert Jenrick (sacked after secret talks with Nigel Farage), and Andrew Rosindell (cited Chagos Islands sovereignty concerns). The defections are framed as character issues rather than ideological or policy differences, and the party insists it remains on the right.

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