Kemi Badenoch hits out at 'sore losers' who want Robert Jenrick to replace her

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has hit back at the "sore losers" advocating for Robert Jenrick to take her place.

She also hinted that some of her critics thought she only landed her role due to positive discrimination, stating they "can't cope with the fact that I won this".

Shadow justice secretary Mr Jenrick, who was beaten by Mrs Badenoch in last year's leadership race, has gained a following through a series of polished social media videos, including erecting English flags and confronting fare evaders.

Mrs Badenoch dismissed it as "wishful thinking" from his supporters that he could replace her, and claimed Mr Jenrick found the situation "distressing".

Speaking to The Sunday Times, she said: "There will always be people who are sore losers, our candidate didn't win and so on, and sour grapes. When I hear those things, I can tell those people are not focused on the country at all.

"Many of those people having those conversations think this is a game. But the lives of people in this country aren't a game."

She continued: "I think even Rob himself finds it distressing, but it's just something that we deal with."

Mrs Badenoch suggested some of the criticism directed at her was "about my race and my ethnicity" and insinuations that "she couldn't possibly have done this all by herself".

She stated some believed she only secured her position through diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.

She said: "There's a certain cadre of people who clearly can't cope with the fact that I won this and I'm doing it. The level of personal attacks from anonymous people, it's hysterical.

"Not even just from MPs. I actually don't think it's that many MPs. I think it's two to three people out of 120. That's nothing. But online as well.

"People used to talk about Trump derangement syndrome. I think there's a Kemi derangement syndrome – 'How could she possibly have done this? It must have been DEI'."

She claims that on social media "there's a lot of ethno-nationalism creeping up, lots of stuff about my race and my ethnicity and the tropes around, 'well, she couldn't possibly have done this all by herself'."

She dismissed allegations she was lazy and late for engagements: "They will try and use the tropes about black people – that they're lazy, they're corrupt or they're all DEI hires – and it's something which I find extraordinary because I take everyone at face value."

Mrs Badenoch has thus far failed to revive the Tories' fortunes, with the party trailing behind both Reform UK and Labour in opinion polls, but insists her task is more challenging than previous opposition leaders because of the emergence of a rival on the right.

"There are now more people competing for that oxygen of attacking the Government," she said.

People are "furious because of things that Labour is doing" and "they are furious because they think that we left the country in a bad state". "I think people are legitimate in that anger."

She compared her challenge to that of William Hague post the 1997 Labour landslide, stating: "We've got fewer MPs, and we've got this new problem with Reform taking a lot of our votes."

She acknowledged it was going to be "a proper uphill task", but her role was to ensure the Tories remained "a force in British politics".

Referring to Reform UK leader Nigel Farage as a "bull***t artist", she criticised his party for being "just about pulling things down and destroying things".