Overview

• Leaked audio published by the Guardian captured Robert Jenrick telling a March Tory dinner he spent about 90 minutes in Handsworth, "didn't see another white face," and called the area "as close as I've come to a slum."
• Pressed on Tuesday during the Conservative conference, the shadow justice secretary said he has no regrets and "won't shy away" from arguing the UK needs fuller integration.
• Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch rejected accusations of racism, describing the remark as a possible factual observation while saying the real issue is people not integrating.
• Condemnation intensified as West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker urged an apology, former Tory mayor Andy Street said Jenrick was "wrong" about Handsworth, and the Bishop of Birmingham said the comments could fuel "toxic nationalism."
• Reports also highlighted that Jenrick’s GB News litter video referenced Handsworth but showed him in nearby Aston with no resident interviews, while official data shows Handsworth’s population is largely non-white with about 9% white residents.