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Kemi Badenoch has dismissed the prospect of an electoral pact with Reform UK, saying such an idea is “for the birds”.
She warned striking a deal with the party would drive away Tory voters who did not want to see her “get into bed” with Nigel Farage.
It comes after Reform UK topped a number of national polls and surpassed 200,000 members – piling pressure on both the Tories and Labour to counter the threat posed by the rapidly growing political party.
But as the Tory leader marks 100 days in office, she has also been accused of “reheating old pledges” on migration, with the Labour Party claiming her plan “deserves nothing but ridicule”.
Ms Badenoch last week unveiled a number of proposals to tackle migration, including saying that the period before migrants can apply for indefinite leave to remain – which paves the way for British citizenship – should be extended from five to 10 years. She said that a UK passport “should be a privilege, not an automatic right”.
But Labour sources pointed out that in 2013 David Cameron’s Home Office used almost exactly the same phrase, while in 2023 Suella Braverman announced measures designed to ensure that “British citizenship is a privilege”.
She also said there should be a hard cap on migrant numbers but declined to say what it should be set at, arguing it would depend on the situation at any given time.
A Labour Party spokesperson said: “After more than a decade of shameful failure, the Conservatives have zero credibility on immigration.
“Kemi Badenoch promised not to announce any policies for two years, but this rushed mess of an announcement shows she’s running scared of Reform.”
They added: “This policy isn’t worth the paper it’s written on: a chaotic mixture of reheated ideas and shoddy policies, badly thought through and clearly written on the hoof. This deserves nothing but ridicule: the Tories really are in a pitiful state.
“Only this Labour government can be trusted with the tough action required to secure our borders.”
Ms Badenoch’s rejection of an electoral pact came after two former cabinet ministers – Sir Brandon Lewis and Esther McVey – warned Ms Badenoch and Mr Farage’s parties would not be able to defeat Labour unless they agreed to cooperate.
Asked about their remarks, Ms Badenoch told The Telegraph: “The Conservative Party is a broad church. When we had disagreements, what people saw was disunity. We’ve now got a place where we are unified.
“The idea that you just do something with a whole different bunch of people and it’s going to be fine is for the birds. Politics just doesn’t work like that.
“There are many people who vote Conservative, who if they think that we’re having mergers or pacts or whatever with Reform, will go elsewhere.”
Pressed on whether she can see any circumstances where she would make a deal with Mr Farage, she said: “No, not me. Nigel Farage has said that he wants to destroy the Conservative Party.
“I have been given something very precious. I am the custodian of an institution that has existed for nigh-on 200 years. We have no guaranteed right to exist. There is no guarantee that we will be in government. But I have to look after this thing. I can’t just treat it like it’s a toy and have pacts and mergers.”
The Labour Party is also facing pressure to consider a deal with Reform, with Home Office minister Angela Eagle on Monday failing to rule out doing a deal with Reform UK.
Asked if Labour would ever do a deal with Reform if there was a hung parliament, Dame Angela told Times Radio: “I think that is so utterly hypothetical. It’s a ludicrous question.”
Pressed again, the minister added: “We have got a very healthy majority, we’ve got a manifesto to put into effect and that is what we are busy doing.
“And what we’re doing today, with these crackdowns on immigration and enforcement ahead of the border security bill which is getting its second reading in the House of Commons this afternoon, is getting on and delivering our plan for change.”
It came after Labour was accused of trying to mimic Reform by publishing videos of raids on migrants accused of working illegally in Britain.
The release of the footage is part of a crackdown on those entering the country illegally, but echoes similar initiatives by Rishi Sunak’s Tory government that were criticised by Labour and others.
The Refugee Council said the government was using “performative” stunts to try to promote division, while former Green Party leader Caroline Lucas said it was “sickening” to see Labour try to appease Reform.
But Downing Street said: “It is important that the government shows it is taking the practical steps to crack down on illegal migration.”
Ms Badenoch’s office has been contacted for comment.
