Overview

• Leaked audio from a 14 March Conservative Association dinner captures Robert Jenrick saying he “didn’t see another white face” during a 90‑minute visit to Handsworth and calling it “not the kind of country I want to live in.”
• Jenrick said he has no regrets and “won’t shy away” from talking about integration, linking social segregation to risks of extremism in interviews on the day of his party conference speech.
• Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch defended him as making a factual observation, though figures such as Mel Stride said they would not have used his words, while Andy Street said he was wrong about Handsworth.
• Labour politicians and community leaders condemned the remarks as divisive or racist, and Keir Starmer said it is hard to take Jenrick seriously, accusing him of running a leadership campaign.
• Reporting highlighted that Jenrick’s GB News litter segment described as Handsworth showed him in nearby Aston, intensifying scrutiny of his account, as ONS data notes Handsworth’s population is largely non‑white.