Badenoch defends Jenrick over comments that he ‘did not see another white face’ in Birmingham – UK politics live

Kemi Badenoch was asked about the Guardian’s story about Robert Jenrick complaining about Handsworth in Birmingham, saying thata he did not see another white face when he visited and that it was not the sort of Britain he wanted to live in.

Related: Robert Jenrick complained of ‘not seeing another white face’ in Birmingham neighbourhood

On Newsnight last night Andy Street, the former Tory mayor of the West Midlands, was also asked about Jenrick’s comments. He said:

I was very proud to be mayor of the most diverse place in Britain, a Conservative mayor with that background.

Putting it bluntly, Robert is wrong. It’s a place I know very well, Handsworth. It’s come a hell of a long way in the 40 years since the last civil disturbances there.

And it’s actually a very integrated place. If you go along the main streets there, you will see Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, Christians, a lot of them of African and Caribbean origin, and of course, white people as well. It is actually one of the most successfully integrated place. Brilliant civic society, brilliant faith leadership.

Asked about Jenrick’s claim that he had seen some of the worst slums ever in Handsworth, Street replied:

I think he was trying to make a point which I don’t agree with.

If you go to the schools in Handsworth, I’ve been to a number recently, you see incredible hope, optimism and people taking part in education which is based around British values and thinking about how they can make a contribution to the future of their their region, their city and their area. That is not a definition of a slum.

Badenoch says she is surprised support for Labour has collapsed so much.

Q: But you have not benefited.

Of course not, says Badenoch. She says at the last election voters kicked the Tories out.

Q: Can you envisage a pact with Reform UK. Two thirds of your members want that?

Badenoch says she is not splitting the right. Reform want more welfare spending, she claims. The only area where they have things in common is immigration. And their plans are not thought through.

She says Reform UK vote for more spending.

Q: Last year you said you were concerned about the impact of being PM on your family. Do you want the job?

Yes, says Badenoch. She says she wants to be PM to make the country better.

This week her husband said the children had told him they wished she worked at McDonald’s, because they would get free burgers and she would be home more often.

She says she is doing this because she thinks she is the best person for the job.

Badenoch is now being interviewed on Times Radio.

Q: Can anyone protest today about Gaza in good faith, given it is the anniversary of the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel.

Badenoch says no.

Q: So should students who are demonstating be punished?

Badenoch says she would not agree with that. She backs free speech, she says.

Nugent shows some pictures of the conference hall half empty at one point, during Mel Stride’s speech.

Badenoch does not accept there is a problem with attendance. She says people have been complaining about not being able to get into fringe meetings. And the hall was full for her speech on Sunday, she says.

They end showing this clip of Badenoch singing at an event last night with young Conservatives.

Party leader, party animal 🇬🇧 🕺 #CPC25 pic.twitter.com/5O3CQPXqoi

— Hugo Rasenberg (@hurasenberg) October 6, 2025

Q: William Hague has a column in the Times today saying there are not enough young members of the party.

Badenoch says the clip shows the opposite. The youth wing is strong, she says.

Nugent asks about this Guardian story about Robert Jenrick.

Related: Robert Jenrick complained of ‘not seeing another white face’ in Birmingham neighbourhood

Q: Jenrick talks about wanting people to be properly accurate. Do you approve of that?

Badenoch says, given it is the Guardian, she will take it with “a pinch of salt”. She goes on:

They haven’t always been the most accurate newspaper.

She suggests the quotes might have been taken out of context.

I don’t know what was being discussed before he said that. But in and of itself, it’s a factual statement.

If he said he didn’t see another white face, he might have been making an observation. There’s nothing wrong with making observations.

But what he and I both agree with is that there are not enough people integrating. There are many people who are creating separate communities. I’m very worried.

Q: So you agree with his concerns?

Badenoch says:

Well, I wasn’t there, so I can’t say how many faces he saw, but the point is that there are many people in our country who are not integrating. I heard that one of the MPs of that area was accusing him of racism. I completely disagree with that. I want to make that very clear. In fact, I’m quite worried about these sectarian MPs who’ve been elected in Birmingham, very, very divisive politics, people who are more interested in talking about Gaza.

Kemi Badenoch is on BBC Breakfast. She is being interviewed by Jon Kaye and Sally Nugent.

Q: Your message is tough to deliver. How will you manager?

Badenoch says politics is about doing the right thing. Labour and Reform UK are making promises they won’t be able to keep. She is being honest. Britain needs to take tough decisions on spending, and to control the borders.

Q: You said you would not announce policies until 2027. But now you are announcing policy. What has changed?

Badenoch says nothing has changed. She goes on:

I never said in 2027 – other people kept asking that.

What I said was that we would not announce policies until we had thought them through. No announcements without plans. That’s the way I do things.

She says she did this with ECHR withdrawal.

This is the way that I do politics. It’s politics done properly. I’m an engineer by background, I have not come from a student politics background, like many in the Labour party.

Good morning. Kemi Badenoch is doing a round of interviews this morning at the Conservative conference in Manchester, and she is likely to be asked about polling out yesterday suggesting half of party members do not think she will lead the party into the next election. Robert Jenrick, the shadow justice secretary, came top when YouGov asked members who they would vote for if there is another contest, but not overwhelmingly. Jenrick, who gives his speech in the conference hall today, was on 37%, and YouGov only asked about three other alternatives (Boris Johnson, James Cleverly and Priti Patel).

Here is the agenda for the day.

7.30am: Kemi Badenoch is interviewed on BBC Breakfast. She is also on Times Radio at 7.45am, the Today programme at 8.10am, Good Morning Britain at 8.25am and LBC at 8.45am.

10am: Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, speaks at the conference, followed by Stuart Andrew, the shadow health secretary, at 10.25am.

10.50am: Members have a debate on the meaning of sex.

11.15am: Laura Trott, the shadow education secretary, speaks to the conference.

11.40am: Robert Jenrick, the shadow justice secretary, speaks.

1pm: Jenrick takes part in a fringe Q&A organised by the Daily Telegraph.

2pm: James Cartlidge, the shadow defence secretary, speaks to the conference, followed by Priti Patel, the shadow foreign secretary, at 2.25pm.

2.50pm: Tony Abbott, the former Australian PM, holds a Q&A in the conference hall with Patel.

3.30pm: Michael Heseltine, the former deputy PM, speaks at a fringe meeting on Europe.

Afternoon: Keir Starmer leaves London for a trip to India.

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