Kemi Badenoch's Year of irrelevance and her path back to relevance
Nearly one year since Kemi Badenoch became the first black female leader of a major British party, the Conservative Party finds itself in a peculiar position – almost entirely irrelevant to the national conversation. Recent polling shows the party languishing at just 15 per cent, the lowest Ipsos has ever recorded, whilst Reform UK surges ahead on 34-36 per cent. It's been a year of irrelevance, certainly. But within this nadir lies Badenoch's greatest opportunity: she is uniquely positioned to articulate an argument no other British political leader can credibly make.
The current political landscape is absurdly simplistic. Reform UK has reduced immigration to a single note of hostility. Labour, reading the polls nervously, appears ready to echo them. Meanwhile, two-thirds of Britons don't believe the Conservatives are ready to govern – the lowest figure for an official opposition since such polling began in 1994. Britain desperately needs someone to break this impasse with an adult conversation about immigration. That person is Kemi Badenoch.
Badenoch's personal story is not just remarkable – it's the story of modern Britain at its best. Born in London to Nigerian parents, she returned to the UK at 16 with only £100 to her name, working at McDonald's whilst studying, eventually becoming a government minister. Her parents came here legally, worked hard, contributed enormously, and raised a daughter who embodies aspiration and achievement. This is precisely the immigration Britain needs more of, not less.
Here's the argument only Badenoch can make with complete credibility: Britain's success has come from immigrants, not despite them. From the Huguenots who revolutionised our textile industry in the 17th century, to the Jewish refugees who transformed British science, finance and culture, to the Windrush generation from the Caribbean who rebuilt post-war Britain, to the Indian and Pakistani doctors and nurses who became the backbone of our NHS – we have been extraordinarily fortunate to welcome the most talented, hardest-working people from around the world. It's historical fact and economic reality.
The Conservative position should be crystal clear as should Labour’s: stop illegal immigration while welcoming with simultaneously welcome the world's hardest-working, most ambitious people through legal channels.
And it's a position that connects directly to the economic competence the Conservatives are trying to rebuild. At the Conservative Party Conference last month Badenoch announced a 'golden rule' on deficit reduction and proposals to abolish stamp duty on primary residences. These are sound economic policies, but they'll mean little if Britain cannot attract the talent and drive that fuel economic growth. Successful economies need controlled immigration of skilled, ambitious people. Ask Switzerland. Ask Singapore. Ask any successful nation.
Reform cannot make this argument – their entire brand is built on hostility to immigration full stop. Labour cannot make it – they're trapped between their liberal guilt and electoral panic. But Badenoch? She is the argument. The daughter of legal immigrants who came with nothing and built something. Who can look her in the eye and say her parents shouldn't have been welcomed?
Britain is facing a choice about what kind of country it wants to be. We can follow Reform's path of wholesale hostility to immigration, watching talented people choose Canada, Australia or America instead. Or we can be smart: ruthlessly control our borders against illegal entry whilst rolling out the red carpet for the ambitious, the talented, and the hardest-working from around the world. People like Badenoch's parents.
Her year of irrelevance could prove essential – sometimes you need to hit bottom to find clarity. The Conservatives suffered their worst ever result in July 2024, falling from 372 to 121 seats. But Badenoch now has the chance to make herself relevant by being the only British political leader who can tell this story with authenticity. Stop the boats. Welcome the best. Build an economy that rewards hard work and enterprise. That's not just Conservative policy – it's the British story.
John Higginson is Editor-in-Chief of Comment Central, Chief Executive of Higginson Strategy and a former national newspaper political editor.
