Suella Braverman blasts Kemi Badenoch as Tories ignore calls for unity

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Two of the top contenders in the competition to succeed Rishi Sunak as Tory leader have clashed with each other, escalating tensions within the party.

Only a few hours after former home secretary James Cleverly urged the party to come together, Suella Braverman criticized those who opposed her and said they were in a state of chaos.

She also mentioned her competitor Kemi Badenoch, posting on Twitter: "I wonder if Kemi believes that I am experiencing a 'very public nervous breakdown'."

Ms Badenoch allegedly made the remarks during the Conservative frontbench's first meeting since losing power on Tuesday.

She disregarded the requests for unity, choosing instead to uphold her statements and stating on Twitter that there had been too much agreement within the cabinet during the party's time in power.

Ms Braverman has received strong criticism after she made a controversial statement about the LGBT+ community at a speech in Washington. She referred to government buildings displaying rainbow flags as "occupied territory".

Ms Braverman responded to her critics by stating, "Those who oppose me are overreacting to my speech."

She stated: "The fundamental principles of our party may be difficult to accept. However, I will continue to communicate them on behalf of the rational, patriotic, conservative majority."

Previously, Mr. Cleverly mentioned that his party must come together following the harmful breach from the shadow cabinet and a dispute regarding the leadership of the powerful 1922 Committee.

Mr Cleverly cautioned his party about engaging in "hostile disagreements" prior to the competition for Mr Sunak's replacement as leader.

"This is precisely how we found ourselves in this situation," he penned in The Times.

He said: "We need to work together and come together to achieve our goals."

Rebuilding our party's good reputation for being competent and honest will require us to be humble and put in a lot of effort. We need to regain the trust of the public and come together to support a wide range of policies that will motivate people to vote for the Conservative party once more.

However, no one paid attention to his request.

Ms. Andrea Jenkyns criticized Ms. Badenoch for not speaking out against Mr. Sunak earlier, saying she was trying to show strength in order to gain support for a leadership election. She also described Ms. Badenoch as "weak".

During the initial shadow cabinet meeting this week, it was mentioned that the shadow housing secretary criticized the former prime minister for calling an early general election without consulting his cabinet. The shadow housing secretary deemed this decision as a error that was almost "unconstitutional."

Ms Badenoch criticized Mr. Sunak for not informing a larger group of colleagues before informing a small group, which included his parliamentary private secretary Craig Williams. It is reported that she referred to Williams as a "buffoon" after he confessed to placing a bet on the election date.

She also criticized the former Prime Minister's decision to leave the D-Day commemorations early as a disaster, and stated that if he had stayed longer in France, colleagues like Penny Mordaunt would have retained their positions.

As disagreements within the party grow more intense, critics of Ms. Badenoch have alleged that her backers are assisting Robert Jenrick's campaign, hoping to secure their preferred candidate's spot in the final two-way race.

According to The Times, Ms Badenoch is worried that some of her colleagues in the Conservative Party fail to understand the full extent of their devastating defeat in the election. She is calling for a comprehensive analysis of what went wrong and for important lessons to be taken from the outcome.

Mr. Sunak allegedly began the meeting by saying sorry.

Ms Badenoch commented following several shadow cabinet members acknowledging Mr Sunak's contributions, including former chancellor Jeremy Hunt who commended his dedication, professionalism, and dedication to serving the public, which he believes helped the party avoid a more severe loss to Labour.

At the same time, angry Conservative Members of Parliament are alleging there is a "conspiracy" to decide who will succeed Mr. Sunak following a dispute over the appointment of a new leader of the powerful 1922 Committee.

Wednesday evening, Mr. Sunak addressed his fellow MPs for the first time since the general election. It was reported that his speech was filled with sadness.

Members of Parliament present also mentioned that there was no animosity towards their leader, despite the crushing loss to the Labour Party.

While there was no mention of appointing a temporary leader, one Member of Parliament expressed their belief that it may not be needed.

Talking after the meeting, a senior member of the Conservative Party criticized his own party for the defeat.

According to Sir Edward Leigh, the Conservative Party needs to take action and implement conservative policies in order to regain strength. This includes implementing stricter controls on migration.

He mentioned that the meeting went well and was courteous, but emphasized the importance of the party having a clear stance and regaining the support of Reform voters who were lost during the election.