Kemi Badenoch is set to reshuffle her shadow cabinet on Monday, with Tom Tugendhat expected to be appointed as shadow foreign secretary, replacing Priti Patel. The move comes after Patel announced her resignation on Sunday night, and James Cleverly stepped down to run for London mayor.
Key appointments and resignations
Tugendhat, a former security minister and leadership candidate, had previously declined to join the shadow cabinet. He has been outspoken on China and Iran since returning to the backbenches, according to The Telegraph, which reported his expected appointment.
Patel, who will take on an “international role” with the party to build ties with rightwing parties globally, said she wanted to spend more time in her Essex constituency. “I’m pleased to continue supporting Kemi and the Conservative party in a new role strengthening our relationships with fellow conservatives and centre-right parties around the world,” she said in a statement.
“At a time of profound global uncertainty, when our values and freedoms are under threat, conservatives must work more closely together. With Labour axing key transport schemes, cancelling plans for a new school, threatening to destroy our countryside, councils and communities and cutting policing, I will be a vocal champion for my constituents in the House of Commons defending their interests and demanding action.”
Further changes to the shadow cabinet
Badenoch has also sacked Stuart Andrew, the shadow health secretary, who confirmed on X he would return to the backbenches. A replacement for shadow energy secretary Claire Coutinho is also expected, as she will soon go on maternity leave with her second child. Coutinho had been widely tipped as Badenoch’s preferred candidate to eventually replace shadow chancellor Mel Stride, whom many Tories privately believe is failing to make the necessary impact.
Julia Lopez, who shadowed the now-abolished science, innovation and technology department, is expected to be given a new role. Helen Grant, the shadow solicitor general, has also asked to leave the shadow frontbench.
Cleverly’s London mayoral bid
Cleverly, who announced his run for London mayor on Sunday, denied he had quit following a shift to the right under Badenoch’s leadership. “I am going to put forward a classic Conservative case to be the mayor of London, and it’s about enterprise, it’s about opportunity,” he told Times Radio. “That is a classically Conservative vision, and it will run in parallel to and supportive of Kemi’s plans for the country as a whole.”
Cleverly, who lost the Conservative leadership race to Badenoch, is considered a more moderate voice in a party that has moved right as support for Nigel Farage’s Reform UK has grown. The appointment of Tugendhat, a hawkish figure on foreign affairs, brings a key voice from the party’s more centrist One Nation grouping into the fold.
