Nearly a third of Britons think Kemi Badenoch’s choice to sack Robert Jenrick ahead of defection has made her stronger

The new polling conducted for the People’s Channel suggests Mrs Badenoch’s decision to sack her Tory leadership rival may have bred more confidence in voters.

According to the survey of 1,000 adults by Merlin Strategies, 30 per cent say Mrs Badenoch’s dismissal of Mr Jenrick before the defection has made her stronger.

However, the same proportion of voters in the poll conducted between January 15-16 believe Mrs Badenoch’s actions have made her weaker, with 40 per cent remaining neutral.

Michael Gove, The Spectator magazine editor and former Tory Cabinet minister, suggested Mrs Badenoch's decision to fire Mr Jenrick “in that way will have sent a message to the country of strength”.

It followed the defection of former Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi this week — and Mr Farage said a high-profile Labour defector will be unveiled next Tuesday.

Reform UK also continues to enjoy a consistent poll lead over the Tories and Labour, with Mr Farage seemingly favourite to be the UK's next Prime Minister.

Merlin Strategies' poll also found Mr Farage has come out stronger from the defection than Ms Badenoch, by a margin of 38 per cent to 31 per cent.

A Tory mole is understood to have provided evidence to CCHQ, including a draft defection speech, Mr Jenrick was planning to jump ship.

On Thursday morning, Ms Badenoch said: "I was presented with clear, irrefutable evidence he (Mr Jenrick) was plotting in secret to defect in a way designed to be as damaging as possible to his shadow cabinet colleagues and the wider Conservative Party."

Later that afternoon, Mr Jenrick was unveiled at a press conference by Mr Farage, who thanked Ms Badenoch for a late Christmas present in helping "realign the centre-right of British politics".

In an exclusive article for Britain’s News Channel, Mr Jenrick declared "Britain is broken" and claimed his former party is "too broken to change".

He said: "The fact is that the Tory Party is so compromised, it cannot speak for the country and oppose Labour’s madness.

"Nigel Farage, meanwhile, has stood – consistently, and often alone – for what’s needed. Ending mass migration, cheap energy, cutting waste, taxes and red tape.

"And to GB News readers, I say this: if you’re not already on board, join the movement."

Last month, GB News revealed Mrs Badenoch is attempting an ambitious political comeback as part of a "tough love" strategy to return to Downing Street.

The People’s Channel understands Mrs Badenoch will lay out a raft of new policies this year, including possible tax breaks for businesses, as she fights to win back the nation's support.

Nick Timothy, Mr Jenrick’s replacement as Shadow Justice Secretary, told GB News Breakfast: "After the last election, people understandably didn’t want to hear from us. But we’ve shown contrition. I am prepared to look people in the eye and say we let the country down.

"That is the first step towards earning the right to be heard again and only by doing that can we truly understand what the country needs and offer it a credible future."

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