Conservative critic accuses party of prioritizing wealthy over working-class voters

Robert Jenrick has accused the Conservative party of abandoning working-class voters and prioritising affluent metropolitan interests. The former justice spokesperson, now Reform UK’s Treasury spokesperson, delivered a speech outlining his criticism of the party’s recent policy direction under Kemi Badenoch. He argued that the Conservatives have shifted away from national representation to serve a narrow wealthy demographic. "What’s left is nothing more than a metropolitan pressure group for the wealthiest," Jenrick said.

Jenrick pointed to several recent policy announcements as evidence of this shift. He noted that proposed changes would provide free childcare for individuals earning a hundred and fifty grand annually and reduce council tax for homes valued at £2m. The inheritance tax exemption he highlighted would apply to estates holding £1m or more in additional funds, benefitting 1 in 245 people in the east Midlands and 1 in 472 in the north-east. He argued these measures ignore voters who rely on wages to survive and show almost no impact outside London and the south-east.

The criticism extended to specific tax decisions. Jenrick claimed the party failed to cut the jobs tax, left the income tax threshold frozen, and avoided reducing taxes for the self-employed and tradespeople. According to his calculations, these choices would leave the average worker paying £265 more than they would under Rachel Reeves. He maintained that working families are effectively subsidising policies that favour central London property owners.

Jenrick used the speech to reflect on his departure from the Conservatives. He stated the party had turned its back on the very communities he entered politics to represent. The traditional voter bases in the red wall, Essex, Workington, and Worcester have been replaced by new strategies targeting Liberal Democrat supporters and internal party elites. "I’ve got to level with you. I have never been happier to be shot of that dying cult," he said, closing his remarks on the party's current trajectory.