I remember when Robert Jenrick came into parliament. He came in as a result of the Newark by-election in 2014.
All backbenchers were encouraged to help out. I went up there two or three times. It seemed like a solid Tory seat, a market town with a rural hinterland, where they weighed the Conservative vote, so to speak.
Jenrick entered the Parliament as a bright, ambitious and capable Cameron-era Tory.
He campaigned for Remain in 2016. I was for Brexit, but my friendship with him was never strained by political disagreements. He was, or rather is, likeable, talented and highly intelligent.
Since the intense days of 2016, it is fair to say Robert Jenrick has been on a journey. It is no secret that he has moved to the right since then. He has toughened his stance on a number of issues, most notably on migration.
His own seat, Newark, is also clearly a target for Reform.
The insurgent party swept to power last May in the Nottinghamshire County Council elections. Jenrick's own seat, located in the county, is regarded as vulnerable.
In trying to show strength, Kemi Badenoch may have just imploded the Conservative Party - Kwasi Kwarteng
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It was inevitable that Jenrick's enemies would accuse him of being "in talks" with Reform.
Politicians, however, talk to one another all the time. I would be very surprised if Nigel Farage had not spoken to Robert Jenrick in the last six months. Senior politicians in one party often talk to other senior figures across the political spectrum about a whole host of issues.
That doesn't mean Jenrick was about to defect.He is certainly ambitious, but he's generally dependable and loyal. So I don't know what "evidence" Kemi Badenoch has to justify the drastic step she has taken.
Clearly, Badenoch and Jenrick sat uneasily together in the shadow cabinet. This is often the case.
Those with long memories will remember Ted Heath sacking Enoch Powell from the shadow cabinet after his "Rivers of Blood" speech in 1968.
More recently, David Cameron surgically removed David Davis from the shadow cabinet after the bizarre self-triggered by-election in 2008.
These removals were designed not only to eliminate a dangerous rival. They were displays of power, designed to show the leader is tough and ruthless.
For Kemi, however, the sacking of Robert Jenrick could have much graver consequences.
The split on the right is real. Badenoch's sacking of Jenrick could actually cause him to defect in reality. That would be a bombshell. It would also potentially be fatal for the Conservatives.
It would show the Tory party was split. Jenrick is no Nadhim Zahawi, a figure who left parliament and is no longer an MP.
Jenrick came second in the last Tory leadership contest. He is still in parliament. He is a current and active political figure in a way that Zahawi simply isn't.
His defection would be Reform's biggest scalp by far. Many Conservatives might consider their own position within the party, should Jenrick defects.
By trying to show strength and decisiveness, Kemi may unwittingly have caused a fatal weakening of her own position and the implosion of the Conservative Party.
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