Issue two | Conservative Party Conference: Kemi buys herself time 

Kemi buys herself time

 

By Laura Gabb, Head of Public Affairs, UK at Weber Shandwick  

 

Laura has a background in Conservative Party politics, having worked in both CCHQ’s press office and as an integral part of CCHQ’s digital team in the winning 2019 General Election campaign. She is currently a member of the Women in Public Affairs Senior Advisory Committee.

Kemi Badenoch’s keynote address at the 2025 Conservative Party Conference in Manchester represented a small window of opportunity to regain relevance in the public eye. The Conservative Party leader has adopted a deliberate approach of not hastily announcing an alternative policy platform since being elected last November but has now set out her stall. There is a long way back for the Party after the defeat in the 2024 election, now compounded by the emergence of Reform, but yesterday Badenoch attempted to kickstart a revival.

 

The speech’s standout moment came with Badenoch’s surprise pledge to completely abolish stamp duty on all home purchases – not just for first-time buyers, but universally. “The next Conservative government will abolish stamp duty on your home. It will be gone,” she declared to thunderous applause.

 

The “Golden Rule” economic framework

 

At the heart of Badenoch’s economic pitch was a new “golden rule”: half of all government savings would go toward reducing the deficit, while the other half would fund tax cuts and pro-growth measures. She announced £47 billion in planned spending cuts – £23 billion from welfare, £8 billion from shrinking the civil service, and £7 billion from overseas aid. The approach signals a return to Cameron–Osborne-era fiscal conservatism and a clear rejection of what she called Labour’s “borrowing and tax doom loop”, while also distancing the Conservatives from Liz Truss’s 2022 mini-budget, a legacy still blamed by Labour for today’s fiscal pressures.

 

The policy is designed to restore the Conservatives’ reputation for economic competence by combining fiscal restraint with promises of tax relief. However, many remain sceptical, given the party’s recent economic record and the difficulty of balancing austerity-style cuts with credible growth ambitions.

 

Badenoch outlined an aggressive welfare reform agenda, proposing to restrict benefits for those with less severe mental health conditions and limit support to British citizens only. Her stark statistic that “six and a half million working-age adults” are claiming benefits rather than working frames welfare as both a fiscal and moral issue, appealing to Conservative voters’ traditional work ethic values.

 

On immigration, she argued that current levels are “heaping pressure on our public sector,” linking immigration directly to declining public services – a message designed to resonate with voters frustrated by NHS waiting times and infrastructure strain.

 

The speech maintained Badenoch’s confrontational tone on cultural issues. She criticised time spent by police on “non-crime hate incidents” and promised to “free the police to protect the public, not to chase political correctness.” Her welfare reforms specifically targeted mental health benefits, restricting support to those with “more severe” conditions, not “anxiety or mild depression.”

 

A subdued visit to Manchester

 

The broader conference themes reflected a party grappling with existential challenges. With Reform leading in the polls, and a string of defections from Conservative councillors during Conference, the Party is still struggling for relevance. Badenoch’s promise to take Britain out of the European Convention on Human Rights signals a hardening of positions designed to win back voters lost to Reform but this was an exercise in a leader and political party fighting for survival.

 

Lurking behind her, and often in front of her, was Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick. His speech and interventions dominated headlines, particularly the leaked recording about Handsworth that has been widely criticised by some long standing conservative grandees. This exposed a widening split within the party, between those urging a populist pivot to win back Reform voters and those warning that such rhetoric risks alienating moderate Conservatives the party needs to rebuild.

 

Kemi and her party will return to Westminster still as the Official Opposition in Parliament. She now has around seven months until the next de facto check on her leadership at the May local and devolved elections next year. This Conference speech may have bought her time, but the pressure will only become greater to maintain relevance while Reform’s march continues.

 

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