Kemi Badenoch came under fire on Wednesday after she failed to hammer Labour over Angela Rayner’s embarrassing tax admission in the Commons.
Tory MPs lambasted their party leader for giving the Government an ‘easy ride’ during Prime Minister’s Questions – half an hour after Ms Rayner admitted not paying enough tax.
Mrs Badenoch urged Sir Keir Starmer to show ‘backbone’ and sack his deputy at the start of the exchanges, but used the rest of her questions to tackle the PM over the economy.
Conservative MPs reacted furiously to her failure saying she missed an ‘open goal’ by ‘a mile’.
Mrs Badenoch’s spokesman told reporters later that both were ‘important stories’ and voters wanted to know what was happening to their bills, mortgages and taxes amid turmoil in the markets.
But she was forced to conduct a television interview about Ms Rayner after leaving the chamber to ram home an attack.
One Conservative ex minister told the Mail Mrs Badenoch’s performance was ‘classic Kemi’.
They added: ‘There was a big, open goal and she missed it by a mile.
‘She gave Labour an easy ride. Kemi has ups and downs at PMQs but this was certainly one of the big downs.’
A senior Tory added: ‘Another open goal missed at PMQs. The deputy PM was there for the taking and she blew it. She will be gone long before DPM.’
Another veteran Conservative said it was ‘not a good day for the Kemi share price’.
A ‘Kemi Countdown’ account on X has been launched in the past week – noting the days remaining until Mrs Badenoch’s leadership can be challenged.
The account shared several tweets criticising Mrs Badenoch’s performance.
It comes as questions continue to be asked about her ten-month tenure in charge of the party, which is languishing third in the polls.
Ms Rayner’s admission of an underpayment of stamp duty on the purchase of a seaside flat in Hove broke at 11.30am on Wednesday, half an hour before PMQs.
Mrs Badenoch welcomed Ms Rayner’s decision to refer herself to the ministerial ethics adviser, Sir Laurie Magnus and asked: ‘Why is she still in office?’
After Sir Keir defended his deputy she said: ‘I’m not sure we would have heard all that sympathy if it was a Conservative deputy prime minister who had underpaid her tax.
‘I remember when the Prime Minister said tax evasion is a criminal offence, and should be treated as all other fraud. If he had a backbone, he would sack her.’
However, after that she focused on the economy and cost of borrowing, which surprised even Labour MPs.
Labour MP James Frith told GB News: ‘I think Keir, the Prime Minister, performed very well. I think he probably would have expected Kemi Badenoch to zone in more.’
