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She could be the leader of the Conservative Party in two weeks’ time, so you’d think Kemi Badenoch would want to take every possible opportunity to win over the electorate. Instead, it seems the candidate is shying away from tough questioning.
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Despite being offered the chance to field questions from Laura Kuenssberg and viewers of her flagship political show on the BBC, Badenoch has turned it down. The refusal is made all the more glaring, given that her rival in the Tory leadership race made a different choice.
Robert Jenrick may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but the Newark MP did front up to a barrage of probing questions from the public last week. He is currently the marginal favourite to replace Rishi Sunak, but the contest remains on a knife-edge.
Kemi Badenoch and her campaign managers may see this act of ‘going to ground’ as damage limitation. But this is a strategy fraught with risk, given that her direct opponent took an alternative approach. Either way, the decision could prove crucial ahead of the 2 November vote.
Members of the Conservative Party still have two weeks to make up their mind. The field has been whittled down from four to two, after Tom Tugdenhat and James Cleverly – who at one point looked set to make the final ballot – were edged out in the preliminary round.
Addressing her viewers on Sunday morning, Laura Kuenssberg made it clear that Kemi Badenoch had not accepted her invite onto the show. She described Robert Jenrick as ‘game enough’ to field her questions – taking a subtle swipe at his opponent in the process…
“Last week, Robert Jenrick was here and game enough to field your tough questions. However, despite our invitation to do the same, Kemi Badenoch has has so far declined. A winner in the Tory leadership race will be declared in November.” | Laura Kuenssberg
