Jenrick won’t rule out leadership bid ahead of dressing down over Rwanda revolt

There has been speculation that Robert Jenrick is gearing up for a future leadership bid (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Ex-immigration minister Robert Jenrick has refused to rule out a future leadership bid – ahead of him being called into No 10 for a dressing down over his involvement in the Rwanda revolt.

There is growing speculation that Mr Jenrick, who quit his Home Office role last year citing concerns over the new Rwanda legislation, hopes to succeed Mr Sunak in a future Conservative Party leadership contest.

Asked by GB News whether he was positioning himself as a future leader, he said: “I’m not giving that any thought… I’m not ruling it out but that is not my intention, yet.”

Formerly seen as an ally to the Prime Minister, Mr Jenrick has taken an increasingly hard-line stance on immigration over the past year and has recently joined forces with Suella Braverman, the former home secretary, to openly criticise the Government’s approach.

Both Mr Jenrick and Ms Braverman were among the 11 rebel Tory MPs who voted against the Rwanda Bill at its third reading this week.

However, he took on a much larger role than the former home secretary in the preparation for the rebellion, tabling over a dozen amendments to the bill which collectively received the backing of more than 60 MPs.

Ms Braverman, meanwhile, took a more backseat role in the right-wing rebellion, despite having previously run for Conservative Party leader in the race to succeed Boris Johnson.

Chief Whip Simon Hart is expected to summon the 11 Rwanda rebels for a dressing down on Monday after they voted against Mr Sunak’s flagship laws to revive the deportation plan.

While the Tory MPs are not expected to lose the party whip, it’s thought that they will be warned they’ll have less flexibility from the party in future.

Tory whips were heard saying amid the Rwanda votes that those voting against would be punished by being denied permission to stay away from the Commons when they have engagements elsewhere.

Alongside Mr Jenrick taking a much more vocal stance on immigration, some have pointed to his recent weight loss and new haircut as a sign that he hopes to take a more senior role in future.

But i has been told the ex-immigration minister, will be keeping his head down in the coming weeks, an approach likely to be replicated by many on the Tory right apart from a handful of outliers after the bruising Commons row over the deportation policy.

One right-wing Tory MP told i that they would “have to wait and see what happens in the Lords” before they and other colleagues decided on what to do next about the bill.

The legislation will face its first test in the Upper House next week as peers vote on a cross-party motion that would delay the endorsement of the UK’s new treaty with Rwanda.

Another MP, who voted for the bill but not the amendments, said that the current legislation needed to be “tested” and that they were reserving judgement until flights to Rwanda were scheduled.

There have also been suggestions that other senior Tory MPs have been making manoeuvres in recent weeks for future leadership bids, including former contender Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch.

The Mail on Sunday suggested that, following this week’s Prime Minister’s Questions, an aide of Ms Badenoch was seen talking down Mr Sunak’s performance in what some perceived as a “leadership plot”.

The paper quoted a Tory insider suggesting it was not clear if Ms Badenoch was aware of the conversations, but a source close to the Business Secretary described the reports as “nonsense”.