The shameless opportunism of a scandal-hit political climber could have profound consequences for our democracy. The British public still knows little about Robert Jenrick, the shadow justice secretary who was seen off by Kemi Badenoch in last year’s race for the Tory crown. That will soon change, because the implosion of the hapless Conservative incumbent is safely filed under “when, not if” – and Jenrick will almost certainly succeed her.
Jenrick’s political evolution reflects the trajectory across the west of the so-called centre right, which has either been eclipsed by the radical right or adopted its positions. When Jenrick won the Newark byelection in 2014, he was – in the words of then nearby Tory MP Anna Soubry – a “full-fat subscriber to David Cameron”. Having defeated Nigel Farage’s then rising party, the now virtually extinct Tory wets hailed his victory at the time as evidence that the party must resist becoming “Ukip lite”. It was a conclusion that Jenrick – who avoided campaigning on either immigration or the EU – endorsed, declaring: “You win elections at the centre.”
