Robert Jenrick returns to Tory front bench as Badenoch’s new justice secretary

New Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has appointed Priti Patel as her Shadow Foreign Secretary and Mel Stride as her Shadow Chancellor as she begins to assemble her shadow cabinet.

Badenoch’s election on Saturday came four months after her predecessor Rishi Sunak announced he was going to step down, having led the party to the worst defeat in its history.

The new leader now has the unenviable task of rebuilding the Tories into a formidable political machine once again – all while facing a Labour Party with a spectacular majority in the House of Commons.

To help her with that task, she’ll need a top team assembled from the 121 Conservative MPs.

It’s not a particularly large pool, especially compared to previous leaders: Boris Johnson had more than three times as many people to choose from following his landslide at the 2019 General Election.

To illustrate the size of the challenge further, there are 124 posts in the Labour government with 111 ministers filling them. (Some do more than one job.)

If Badenoch wanted to choose MPs to oppose every one of them, it would mean assigning positions to almost everyone elected for the Tories in July – though of course, she’s got her pick of the House of Lords too.

And regardless, the shadow cabinet is not normally as extensive as that.

The former Business Secretary will meet with her team for the first time tomorrow, so all will be announced by then.

Here are her picks for shadow cabinet, and why they might have been chosen.

Shadow Chancellor: Mel Stride

Badenoch said she would offer shadow cabinet roles to her leadership rivals, and Mel Stride got the pick of the bunch.

The former Pensions Secretary was the second out of the race earlier this year, after Priti Patel (more on her later).

Speculation in Westminster suggested he was more keen on the role of Shadow Chancellor than leader, so he’s likely to be pleased with this appointment.

He also represents a more centrist wing of the Conservatives, which could help Badenoch appeal to that wing of her party.

Shadow Foreign Secretary: Dame Priti Patel

Dame Priti Patel also ran for the Tory leadership following Rishi Sunak’s announcement of his resignation, but she was the first to be given the boot by MPs.

Nevertheless, she’s been given a very high-profile place on the shadow front bench by Badenoch.

Dame Priti is best known for her three-year spell as Home Secretary under Boris Johnson, during which she laid the groundwork for the ill-fated Rwanda scheme.

Like Badenoch, she belongs to the right wing of the party. She has been at the centre of a number of controversies, including accusations of bullying.

Shadow Justice Secretary: Robert Jenrick

Another former leadership rival, and a particularly bitter one at that, Robert Jenrick has reportedly been offered several shadow cabinet jobs by Badenoch and has been engaged in heated backroom discusssions.

A Conservative source told the BBC: ‘Kemi just doesn’t like Rob. She thinks his whole schtick about her and whether she has any policies has done her lasting damage with the right and with Reform voters.

‘This is only likely to further unravel.’

During her victory speech on Saturday, Badenoch praised Jenrick’s ‘energy and determination’ during the campaign, and told him: ‘You and I know that we don’t actually disagree on very much, and I have no doubt that you have a key role to play in our party for many years to come.’

Shadow Education Secretary: Laura Trott

It is understood that Laura Trott has been appointed Shadow Education Secretary.

She previously served as Chief Minister to the Treasury while the Conservatives were in government, and had been discussed as a possible Shadow Chancellor.

In the role, she will go head-to-head with Labour Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson.

Neil O’Brien has also been appointed Shadow Education Minister, and the pair will appear on the opposition front bench this afternoon for education oral questions.

Chief whip: Dame Rebecca Harris

Rebecca Harris will replace Stuart Andrew as the Conservative chief whip, ensuring discipline among the ranks of Tory MPs on important votes.

She’s the MP for Castle Point in Essex, a short distance from Badenoch’s own North West Essex constituency.

It makes sense that the chief whip is the first position appointed: Parliament is still in term with some key votes coming up – including motions on the Budget in two days’ time.

Harris, who was first elected in 2010, is also said to be helping Badenoch out with her picks for the rest of the cabinet. As the whip, she’ll know the good and bad points of every option.

Party chairmen: Nigel Huddleston and Lord Dominic Johnson

Two men will reportedly replace Richard Fuller as Chairman of the Conservative Party.

Nigel Huddleston is the MP for Droitwich and Evesham, and Dominic Johnson is a banker who sits in the House of Lords as the Lord Johnson of Lainston.

The chairmen have responsibility for overseeing the party machinery, including how the party’s election candidates are selected.

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