Weasel in a Suit Robert Jenrick Defects to Reform - What's next for the Tories?

Politics Uncensored

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Friday, 16 January 2026 - 49 minutes

Robert Jenrick has defected to Nigel Farage's Reform UK - what does this mean for the future of the Tories? Robert Jenrick was sacked from the shadow cabinet today with Kemi Badenoch citing “irrefutable evidence” that he was planning on defecting to Reform in the most damaging way possible. Perhaps that evidence is everything he’s done since Kemi became leader, or perhaps, the fact that he has now ditched the Conservatives.After discussing Robert Jenrick's not so shocking departure, Callum Mason, deputy money editor at the I joins the show to discuss how student loans have screwed over young people.Kemi Badenoch's Statement:Badenoch said in a statement: “I have sacked Robert Jenrick from the shadow cabinet, removed the whip and suspended his party membership with immediate effect.“I was presented with clear, irrefutable evidence that he was plotting in secret to defect in a way designed to be as damaging as possible to his shadow cabinet colleagues and the wider Conservative party.“The British public are tired of political psychodrama and so am I. They saw too much of it in the last government, they’re seeing too much of it in THIS government. I will not repeat those mistakes.”“When I was elected leader, I committed to doing politics differently. Disloyalty and dishonesty undermine trust in politics,” she said.“When individuals choose to walk away from that effort for personal ambition, that tells you nothing about the Conservative party and everything you need to know about them.”Student Loans:Since 2017 interest on student loans has vastly overtaken the annual loan repayments made by university leavers, with the total interest added reaching £15bn in 2023-2024.In 2012, tuition fees were tripled – from £3,000 to £9,000 a year – and the terms of student loans were changed so that we paid sky-high amounts of interest on the balance.Zoe and Ali then discuss Former Conservative former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi defects to Reform ‘after begging Tories for peerage’ and Increasingly further far right party UKIP have taken their next big leap forward by choosing a logo that looks suspiciously like the Nazi iron cross… allegedly Guest bio: Callum Mason is a Money and Business Reporter at The i Paper. He specializes in finance, personal finance, construction and real estate, as well as banking and financial services, exploring the intricate dynamics of financial markets. Callum's work has been featured in notable publications such as Tes, Global Finance Herald, Headlinemoney, and Cigalah Group.

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