Kemi Badenoch's 'policy void'
Conservative leader must convince voters the party has more to offer than the 'same old magic beans'

"Sorry, for Kemi Badenoch, does not seem to be the hardest word," said The Times. Last week, the Tory leader used her first major speech in opposition to deliver a characteristically punchy "mea culpa" for her party's failures in government. The Conservatives were wrong to leave the EU without a plan for growth, Badenoch said, and to make empty promises on immigration and net zero.
"The candour is refreshing," said Gaby Hinsliff in The Guardian. It usually takes years for losing parties to "face up to why they actually lost". But it's also a sign that Badenoch is "rattled". And no wonder: the Tories are now in third place in several polls, behind Labour and Reform UK. Admitting past mistakes will allow her to go on the attack against Nigel Farage, who is "promising the earth" on immigration. But it also raises the question: what exactly will her party be selling, "if not the same old magic beans"?
"The answer is… hard to discern," said Rachel Cunliffe in The New Statesman. You'll notice Badenoch didn't apologise for her own record in government – she seems physically incapable of admitting personal blame. She talked only of "valiant" personal successes, such as when she repealed several EU laws as business secretary. And while she gave a long list of "what was wrong with the country: low productivity, high taxes... broken public services" – Badenoch offered nothing "in the way of solutions". She has vowed not to set out detailed policies until 2027, so that the party can take the time to "reflect". In other words: she "still has no ideas".
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"Time is not a luxury Badenoch has," said Sam Lister in the Daily Express. While the Conservatives waste years taking the party back to "first principles", Reform is out there "filling the vacuum". Right now, Farage's party "has by far the clearest policy positions on things vast numbers of voters care about", said James Frayne in The Daily Telegraph: cutting migration, getting tough on crime, taking on "woke". If Badenoch carries on with a policy void for much longer, her party will go "from being a disappointment to an irrelevance", and Reform will "effectively replace the Conservatives as the official opposition".
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
'How quickly misogynistic videos show up in users' TikTok and YouTube feeds'
instant opinion 'Opinion, comment and editorials of the day'
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - March 28, 2025
Cartoons Friday's cartoons - national debt, debt of gratitude, and more
By The Week US Published
-
China's football crisis: what's happened to Xi's XI?
In The Spotlight String of defeats and finishing bottom of World Cup qualifying group comes a decade after Xi Jinping launched a football crusade
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The EPA: Let’s forget about climate change
Feature You’ll miss the EPA when it’s been gutted, said former EPA heads
By The Week US Published
-
Schumer: Did he betray the Democrats?
Feature 'Schumer had only bad political options'
By The Week US Published
-
Trump's TPS takedown
Feature The president plans to deport a million immigrants with protected status. What effects will that have?
By The Week US Published
-
Amtrak is the latest organization under DOGE's scrutiny
In the Spotlight The head of the organization recently announced his resignation
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
How are attorneys dealing with Trump's attacks on law firms?
Today's Big Question Trump has sanctioned the law firm that investigated his dealings with Stormy Daniels, among others
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Musk: Is Trump putting him on a leash?
Feature Elon Musk’s aggressive government cuts are facing backlash from Trump’s Cabinet
By The Week US Published
-
SCOTUS: A glimmer of independence?
Feature The Supreme Court rejects Trump’s request to freeze nearly $2 billion in foreign aid payments
By The Week US Published
-
DOGE: Wielding a hatchet at the VA
Feature The Trump administration has cut thousands of Veteran Affairs jobs and is considering eliminating 80,000 more
By The Week US Published