'She Will Get Better': Mel Stride's Attempt To Defend Kemi Badenoch Backfires Spectacularly

Mel Stride and Kemi BadenochMel Stride’s attempt to defend Kemi Badenoch fell apart when he insisted the Conservative leader “will get better” at her job.Badenoch only became Tory leader in November, four months after the Tories’ historic general election defeat last July.But since then, the Conservatives have slumped even further, with the part losing nearly 700 councillors at last month’s local elections and even slipping to fourth place in a recent opinions poll, behind Reform UK, Labour and the Liberal Democrats.Badenoch has made plenty of high-profile gaffes too, including suggesting Israel is fighting a proxy war for the UK against Hamas and clashing with TV presenters over the Netflix show Adolescence. The Tory leader has not fared well at prime minister’s questions in the Commons either.She has been described as “embarrassing to watch” while she was criticised two weeks ago for apparently missing Keir Starmer’s announcement that Labour would U-turn on its decision to take winter fuel payments off 10 million pensioners.These very public slip-ups have led to some calls – from both within and outside the party – for Badenoch to be replaced.Shadow chancellor Stride tried to stand up for his leader today – but it ended up backfiring.After making a speech distancing the party from former Tory PMLiz Truss, a reporter asked him if the Tories should change the way they elect their leaders.Stride said he did not want to comment on the process – and then, without being prompted, started to insist that his boss would soon improve.Defending her unusual leadership style, Stride told the journalists: “If you look at the nature of the challenge and the approach to it that I have set out, which is deep thought through through time and thoughtfulness, she [Badenoch] is the person to lead us.“She will get better through time at the media.“She will get better through time at dispatch box though PMQs, just as Margaret Thatcher, when she became leader in ’75, was often criticised for everything from her hair to the clothes she wore to the pitch of her voice to heaven knows what else, in the end, she got it together, and Kemi will do absolutely that.“What she is doing behind the scenes is leading a shadow cabinet that is united, and our party has not been united in that way for a very long time.“And she is going to drive through the process with me and others, so that we come to the right conclusions.”Although it has been almost a year since the Tories’ abysmal election result, they still have very few policies. Badenoch has refused to unveil any big plans until 2027 – but still claims she is focused on regaining voters’ trust in the meantime.Speaking in January, the Tory leader said: “Reform is saying stuff because it hasn’t thought it all through. You can give easy answers if you haven’t thought it all through. I do the thinking and what people are going to get with new leadership under me is thoughtful Conservatism, not kneejerk analysis.”Related...Fresh Blow To Kemi Badenoch As Just 1 In 10 Brits Think Tory Leader Is PM In WaitingSenior Tory MPs Defy Kemi Badenioch To Call For A Palestinian State'It's A Case Of When, Not If': Tory MPs Believe Kemi Badenoch's Time As Party Leader Is Already Running Out

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