Kemi Badenoch’s former leadership rivals to attend first shadow cabinet meeting

Kemi Badenoch will hold her first shadow cabinet meeting today after filling her new top team with three former leadership rivals in a bid to unite the Conservative Party. Robert Jenrick has accepted a role as shadow justice secretary while Dame Priti Patel will serve as shadow foreign secretary and Mel Stride as shadow chancellor. All three ran as candidates against Ms Badenoch in the race to replace Rishi Sunak.

The appointments to the opposition frontbench are an effort to unite different Tory factions after a long leadership election battle. Mrs Badenoch also named Laura Trott as the new shadow education secretary and Tory former minister Neil O’Brien as a shadow education minister. Both appeared in their new roles in the House of Commons at education questions yesterday afternoon.



Shadow cabinet ministers - most of whom are yet to be named - will gather for their first meeting under the new leader later today. You can join the conversation in the comments section ..