James Cleverly will get new function as Kemi Badenoch reshuffles high crew

Conservative Occasion chief Kemi Badenoch has made Sir James Cleverly her shadow housing secretary as a part of a reshuffle of her senior crew, the BBC has been instructed.

The brand new function would see Sir James, a former overseas and residential secretary, go head-to-head with Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner in Parliament.

He’s anticipated to switch Kevin Hollinrake, who will turn into Conservative Occasion chairman.

The BBC understands present social gathering chair Nigel Huddleston will turn into shadow tradition secretary.

Stuart Andrew strikes from tradition to well being, changing Edward Argar, who has confirmed he might be standing down following a “well being scare”.

In a letter to Badenoch, the Melton and Syston MP mentioned he had “listened to what the docs mentioned to me… and have concluded that lightening my entrance bench workload over the approaching months with a view to full my restoration and absolutely restore my well being in that interval, is the wise strategy”.

Posting his resignation letter on social media, Badenoch mentioned: “I wish to placed on document my honest because of Ed Argar for serving in my shadow cupboard.

“I want him the easiest for a speedy restoration and return to full well being.”

Badenoch had been poised to make small adjustments to her frontbench crew with a view to exchange one or two shadow ministers who needed to step down for private causes.

Nevertheless, the Tory chief opted for an even bigger shake-up, with about half a dozen adjustments anticipated. A full listing of appointments is anticipated to be revealed afterward Tuesday afternoon.

Nobody from the 2024 consumption of Conservative MPs is anticipated to get a promotion to the shadow cupboard.

John Glen, a Treasury minister within the earlier Conservative authorities, has been made Badenoch’s parliamentary personal secretary – a job which duties the MP with changing into his chief’s ‘eyes and ears’ in Parliament.

Badenoch’s entrance bench presently contains shadow residence secretary Chris Philp, Dame Priti Patel as shadow overseas secretary and Laura Trott within the training transient.

Earlier on Tuesday, a celebration supply mentioned the frontbench adjustments would “replicate the subsequent stage of the social gathering’s coverage renewal programme and underline the unity of the social gathering beneath new management.

They added that Sir James Cleverly could be given a distinguished entrance bench function to “take the combat to this dreadful Labour authorities”.

Sir James has been a backbench MP since being eradicated from the Tory management election in October 2024, after which Badenoch went on to defeat her closest rival, the now-shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick.

He acquired a knighthood in April 2025 as a part of former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s resignation honours listing.

The reshuffle comes eight months into Badenoch’s management of the Conservatives – a interval which has seen the social gathering often ballot third or fourth, behind Labour, Reform UK and generally the Liberal Democrats.

In Could, the Tories suffered a poor set of ends in the native election, dropping management of 16 councils.

In an interview with the BBC in June, Badenoch mentioned she was “going to get higher” as chief, including: “You don’t need individuals to be the easiest they will be on day one.”

She added that the Conservatives had “hit all-time low” on the final common election and that her efforts to alter her social gathering was “not going to occur in a single day”.

Responding to the reshuffle, a Labour supply mentioned: “After initially claiming her shadow cupboard could be in place till the subsequent election, Kemi Badenoch has already hit the panic button.

“The Tory chief can shuffle as many deckchairs as she likes, nevertheless it’ll nonetheless be the identical previous faces that have been answerable for 14 years of failure.”