Jenrick blames Tory ‘smear’ amid probe into party leadership campaign donations
Robert Jenrick has accused the Conservative Party of trying to smear him after the elections watchdog referred an investigation into donations to his Tory leadership bid before he defected to Reform UK to police.
The Electoral Commission made the referral to the Metropolitan Police over allegations almost £40,000 of donations to the 2024 campaign were from a foreign source in breach of electoral rules, the Guardian reported in April.
Asked about the probe, Mr Jenrick, now Reform UK’s Treasury spokesman, told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg he is “absolutely” confident he did nothing wrong.
“This is just a smear that’s been put out by the Conservative Party,” he said.
Responding to the argument the questions raised are not just allegations claimed by a political opponent but an investigation referred to police by an official watchdog, Mr Jenrick said: “Let’s just be clear, there’s no suggestion that I personally did anything wrong.
“You accept donations, in this case it was a donor that the Conservative Party referred to me, they checked them out, and I’m absolutely certain there’s been no wrongdoing here.”
Mr Jenrick defected to Reform UK in January after he was sacked as shadow justice secretary and suspended from the Tory party.
The Conservative Party has been contacted for comment.
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Who is going to believe a guy who says you won’t pay tax on your overtime? That’s because you WILL work enforced or unavoidable overtime but WON’T be paid for a minute of it and therefore – no tax. That’s more like it, now i believe him. The trouble with Tories is that they don’t finish sentences. Not a Tory? Oh yes he is but now a member of one of their many extremist familes.