Just five days after discussing strategy with Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick was sacked for plotting a defection to Reform UK. Jenrick appeared at Nigel Farage's side only a few hours later, branding his former party as "rotten".

Did Kemi Badenoch’s decisive action make her look strong, or did she jump the gun? How long had Jenrick, a former Tory leadership contender, been planning his exit to the right? And does this add yet more fuel to Farage’s claims that the Conservative Party’s days are numbered?

Deputy opinion editor Miranda Green hosts a discussion about the ‘psychodrama’ that has rocked Westminster this week with the FT’s deputy political editor Jim Pickard, columnist and writer of the ‘Inside Politics’ newsletter Stephen Bush, and FT’s chief political commentator Robert Shrimsley.

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Betrayal, plots and a mole who derailed Jenrick’s defection to Reform

Robert Jenrick joins Reform UK after being sacked from Tory shadow cabinet

Jenrick’s sacking is both threat and opportunity for Badenoch

Lunch with the FT Robert Jenrick: ‘I’m unashamedly provincial in my attitudes’

Latest U-turn raises renewed questions over Keir Starmer’s judgment

And sign up here for Stephen's morning newsletter, Inside Politics, for straight-talking insight into the stories that matter, plus puns and tongue-(mostly)-in-cheek analysis.

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Political Fix was presented by Miranda Green, and produced by Julia Webster. Flo Phillips is the executive producer. Sound engineering by Breen Turner. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s global head of audio.

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Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had wanted to kick off the new year with a strong domestic start, tackling the cost of living crisis head on, in the hopes of improving his dire poll ratings. Instead, he has found himself firefighting on the international front, trying to navigate Donald Trump’s foreign policy frenzy.

How will Starmer manage his ‘special relationship’ with the US president in light of recent events? Where do Trump’s latest actions leave Nato, especially with regard to Ukraine? And what does all this global uncertainty mean for the Labour leader’s agenda at home?

Host George Parker discusses the balancing act facing the government with the FT’s deputy opinion editor Miranda Green, chief political commentator Robert Shrimsley and acting Whitehall correspondent David Sheppard.

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Strategic supplication is Europe’s only Trump policy

France and UK commit to deploying troops under proposed Ukraine peace deal

UK armed forces warn of £28bn defence funding shortfall

Greenland’s future must be decided by island and Denmark, Starmer warns Trump

‘Not in my name’: Labour’s new towns battle

And sign up here for Stephen Bush's morning newsletter, Inside Politics, for straight-talking insight into the stories that matter, plus puns and tongue-(mostly)-in-cheek analysis.

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Political Fix was presented by George Parker, and produced by Lulu Smyth and Julia Webster. Flo Phillips is the executive producer. Sound engineering by Simon Panayi. Manuela Saragosa is the FT’s acting co-head of audio.

What did you think of this episode? Let us know at politicalfix@ft.com

Clip from UK Parliament

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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Imagine a graph with one line going up over time. Below it, another line does just the opposite. It kind of looks like the letter K. On the FT's Swamp Notes podcast, Claire Jones and Rob Armstrong break down why people are saying that letter represents the state of the economy and what it means for the White House.

Mentioned in this podcast:

Does the K-shaped economy theory even make sense?

Email Marc with your questions (Marc.Filippino@FT.com)

Sign up for the FT’s Swamp Notes newsletter here

This is a repeat of an episode published on Swamp Notes, a sister podcast of Political Fix, on Nov. 28, 2025. Follow the Swamp Notes podcast to hear more.

Swamp Notes is hosted by Marc Filippino, and produced by Henry Larson. This week’s show was mixed by Sam Giovinco. The FT’s acting co- head of audio is Topher Forhecz. Special thanks to Pierre Nicholson.

The FT does not use generative AI to voice its podcasts.

CREDIT: Bloomberg, PBS, CNN

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