MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

British opposition has a new leadership, and reaffirms its Conservative values and position

Kemi Badenoch was elected by party members to replace former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak

The Falkland Islands Government Office in London sent congratulations to Kemi Badenoch MP on her election as Leader of the Conservatives and Her Majesty’s loyal opposition. “We look forward to working with you and your new team”, read the congratulations.

Kemi Badenoc became last Saturday the leader of the British Conservative party, now in the opposition, in a final dispute with Robert Jenrick, a former Tory minister, taking 57% of the party’s vote. The 44 year old systems engineer is a woman of Nigerian/Yoruba family ancestry, has had a meteoric career in the Conservative party and has called for a return of Conservative values and principles, including a strict immigration policy.

Her election follows the announcement from former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (of Asian background) of his resignation, following the great defeat to the Labor party last July, ending fourteen years of Conservative governments.

Believing Conservatives were insufficiently right wing, the new leader (the sixth in a decade) said “the moment to say the truth has arrived, to defend our principles, to plan for the future, to rethink our policies and to give our party and our country the new beginning they deserve”, but many UK analysts also believe it is time for the Conservatives to begin admitting and apologizing for their failings.

Tories are down to 121 members in the House of Commons, (24% of the overall vote) and regrouping the party in the extreme right can be a challenge. UK public opinion are strongly disenchanted with austerity policies, poor public services, inflation and the many scandals while Boris Johnson was prime minister. Liberals Democrats have bitten into the middle road electorate and Nigel Farrage and his Reform UK party into pure conservatism.

Born Olukemi Olufunto Adegoke in London, until 16 lived in Lagos and US, since her mother was a visiting professor of physiology, and her father a GP. She later became a computer software systems engineer, (Essex University) and obtained a Bachelor of Laws. In 2005 she joined the Conservative party and in 2016 she took off in active politics as a member of the London Assembly, later in Commons as a member of Liz Truss and Boris Johnson’s cabinets. In 2012 she married Hamish Badenoch and they have three children