Jenrick described their relationship as “positive” and added: “Look, I respect him.” On immigration, he argued that they were “basically making the same point, which is that we’re going to abolish indefinite leave to remain.”
He added: “If you don’t meet our economic tests, then you’re gonna have to leave the country. And if you happen to be in social housing, it’s very, very likely that you will not meet our economic tests because by definition you’re reliant on the state. So if you’re not a Brit and you’re in social housing, you’re going to be given a short period to leave that housing. We have said three months.”
Challenged on where that would leave families with one immigrant and a partner or spouse with U.K. citizenship, or children born into families housed under the existing rules, Jenrick responded that families could find accommodation in the private sector, and insisted that priority should be given to British citizens, who currently face wait-lists. “You can’t say in all good conscience [that a] British military veteran or a British victim of domestic abuse should be living on the streets or in precarious temporary accommodation,” he argued, “and then there’s somebody who’s a more recent arrival to the U.K. who’s not a British citizen who gets that housing.”
The prospect of large-scale deportations of people settled in the U.K. who cannot afford to pay for housing remains one of Reform’s most controversial policies. Jenrick repeated arguments that many would choose to leave voluntarily, and said he was in favor of mass deportations if necessary.
“Will there also be the need for some people to be deported? Yes, absolutely, and that happens in every other country in the world,” he said. “It’s a curious mindset that we’ve got ourselves in in this country where we seem to be prioritizing the interests of people who are not British citizens.”
Despite stark disagreements with his colleagues in parliament, Jenrick said he maintains good relations across the benches — but said he would he prefer a farewell pint with Starmer or a welcome one with Burnham to a drink with his Treasury rival, Chancellor Rachel Reeves. “I would go for a Burnham,” he said. “And yes, I would go for a consolation drink with Rachel Reeves … but we would have to spend a lot of time trying to find a pub that she isn’t barred from.”
Peter Snowdon contributed to this report. Listen to the full Westminster Insider interview here.