What Tory leadership contenders have said about UK riots as Kemi Badenoch accused of being missing in action

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Tory leadership hopeful Kemi Badenoch has been accused of being “missing in action” during the violent riots that have swept the UK.

While the MP has been active on social media in the last week, sharing posts about minimum service legislation and gender among other issues, she has yet to post anything directly addressing the mass unrest that has taken place since the murder of three young girls in Southport.

Over the weekend, when the UK saw its worst levels of violence, Ms Badenoch shared an interview she did with the Telegraph about her leadership bid and “the truth about the recent smears” on her campaign.

However, polls suggest she still appears to be the frontrunner in the race to succeed Rishi Sunak, with a poll of Tory party members conducted by Conservative Home showing that 33 per cent back the former business secretary - up seven points on last month.

The survey, which spoke to 917 party members between August 5 and 7, put Robert Jenrick in second place, Tom Tugendhat in third, James Cleverly in fourth and Priti Patel in fifth. In last place was Mel Stride, a surprise entrant to the race.

Mr Sunak has also remained notably quiet, leaving most of the commentary on the disruption to the candidates vying to replace him. After more than a week and a half of unrest, The Independent looks at what each leadership candidate has said on the issue.

Ms Badenoch’s low profile during the unrest led one Conservative colleague to tell the Guardian that she is “like a submarine”, only occasionally “coming up to cause chaos – which works in cabinet, but doesn’t work in a leader”.

Another senior Tory said the leadership contender was “missing in action”. Her main intervention came in an interview with the Telegraph last week, which saw her argue there has not been enough integration in the UK.

“You look at all the tension that we’ve been seeing in the country over the last few days in Southport and Hartlepool, everybody’s quiet. They don’t want to upset the cultural establishment that wants to pretend that nothing is going on.

“They should be saying that we need a clearer strategy on integration, which we don’t have at the moment”, she said.

A spokesperson for Ms Badenoch told The Independent: “The Tory leadership race will not be determined by who does the most media, but who has the best vision for the future of the Conservative Party.

“Kemi has been touring across the UK this week meeting members, listening to their views on the renewal of our party, and she will continue to do so regardless of these smears."

Mr Cleverly came out early to condemn the riots, saying they are “an insult to the memory of the victims of this heinous attack”, adding that they are “the actions of people … responding to disinformation online”.

He said attacks on mosques and hotels were “clearly driven by racism and should be condemned unequivocally right across the board”.

The shadow home secretary also questioned Sir Keir Starmer’s announcement of a “standing army” of specialist police officers, asking if the force means the government expects “permanent riots” in the UK.

But he backed the prime minister’s decision not to recall Parliament, saying such a move is not necessary provided there is a “fast” and “clear” flow of information to MPs.

The former immigration minister urged the government to “back our brave police officers in using the full force of the law without fear or favour to restore order”.

In a video posted to X, Mr Jenrick said: “Now is the time to punish the guilty, to lock up the rioters and to take back control of Britain’s streets.”

But he sparked outrage this week after saying people shouting “Allahu Akbar” on London streets “should be arrested immediately”.

“Allahu Akbar” is an Arabic phrase meaning “God is greater” or “God is greatest” which is commonly used in prayer and as a declaration of faith.

The Muslim Association of Britain dubbed the remarks “pure unadulterated Islamophobia”, while Afzal Khan, Labour MP for Manchester Rusholme, said it is another example of a “senior Tory being Islamophobic”. Conservative peer Baroness Sayeeda Warsi accused the Tory leadership contender of “nasty divisive rhetoric”.

Mel Stride accused Nigel Farage of stirring up disruption in the wake of the Southport attacks, saying he would not be welcome in the Conservative Party under his leadership.

He criticised the Reform UK leader’s response to the riots, saying he was “irresponsible and wrong to fuel the fires” while the UK faced some of the “worst public order offences” in many years.

This came after Mr Farage claimed the UK has a system of “two-tier policing”, a far-right claim which has been used to justify the disorder, suggesting police are taking a softer approach with left-wing and Islamic protesters than they are with white working-class protesters.

Mr Stride told Sky News the UK needs “level heads, and moderation as well as very firm action. And we have seen very firm action.”

Dame Priti Patel has also distanced herself from comments made about the riots by the Reform UK leader which saw him suggest that the escalation in violence came as a result of “soft policing” during Black Lives Matter protests.

The former home secretary told Times Radio there is a “stark difference” between the “thuggery, violence and racism” seen over the last week and the “protests that were being policed” during the pandemic.

She added that “a lot of what we have seen is down to misinformation and social media”, warning it is “irresponsible” to think everything online is factual.

Unlike Mr Cleverly, Dame Priti called for Parliament to be recalled, as well as accusing Labour of being “breathtakingly complacent” in their initial response to the unrest.

Tom Tugendhat has described the events over the last week and a half as being “dark days for our country”, adding: “Violent mobs cannot be allowed to threaten the basic freedoms of our friends and neighbours.

“The government must urgently get a grip of the situation and end the lawless behaviour of a few.”

Mr Tugendhat also criticised Labour’s initial response to the riots, on Saturday questioning why a Cobra meeting had not yet been called.

Posting to social media, he added: “Extremism and lawlessness cannot be tolerated. This has to stop. What is taking Labour so long?”