Nigel Farage has rejected talk of a pact between Reform UK and the Conservatives, saying his supporters would be “revolted” by the suggestion.
In an audio recording obtained by Sky News, shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick could be heard saying he wanted the “fight” against Labour to be “united” and vowing to create a “coalition” to achieve that.
A source close to Mr Jenrick later said he had been talking “about voters and not parties”.
But asked about Mr Jenrick’s comments on Wednesday, Reform leader Mr Farage told GB News: “I think my supporters would be revolted.”
He added: “We had 14 years of the Conservative Party. Tax is the highest since 1947, the state growing, the Civil Service growing, mass immigration at levels even Tony Blair couldn’t dream of.
“They let people down by every single measure.”
Asked whether he would do a deal with Mr Jenrick or the Tories, Mr Farage said: “I can only deal with people who I could trust. I don’t trust them.”
In the recording, Mr Jenrick had said that if Mr Farage’s party became a “permanent or semi-permanent fixture on the British political scene”, then “life becomes a lot harder” for the Tories.
Speaking to the UCL Conservative Association in March, Mr Jenrick said: “You head towards a general election, where the nightmare scenario is that (Sir) Keir Starmer sails in through the middle as a result of the two parties being disunited.
“I don’t know about you, but I’m not prepared for that to happen.”
Mr Jenrick added: “I want the fight to be united. And so, one way or another, I’m determined to do that and bring this coalition together, and make sure we unite as a nation as well.”
A source close to Mr Jenrick said on Wednesday: “Rob’s comments are about voters and not parties.
“He’s clear we have to put Reform out of business and make the Conservatives the natural home for all those on the right, rebuilding the coalition of voters we had in 2019 and can have again.
“But he’s under no illusions how difficult that is – we have to prove over time we’ve changed and can be trusted again.”
Labour Party chairwoman Ellie Reeves said on Wednesday that Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch “needs to urgently come clean as to whether she backs her shadow justice secretary doing grubby deals with Reform behind the electorate’s back, or if she will rule it out”.
Ms Reeves added: “If she disagrees with Robert Jenrick, how can her leadership have any credibility whilst he remains in her shadow cabinet?”
Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said that the comments show “senior Conservatives are plotting a grubby election deal with Nigel Farage”.
She added: “Kemi Badenoch should sack Robert Jenrick now if she’s serious about ruling out a pact with Reform. Anything less would show she’s either too weak to sack him or that she agrees.”
Mrs Badenoch’s spokesman said she had not been aware of Mr Jenrick’s comments ahead of them being obtained by Sky, but added it was “demonstrably true” that the right is not “united”.
He said: “She agrees that we need to bring centre-right voters together to defeat Labour.”
