Kemi Badenoch entered the House of Commons as Conservative MP for Saffron Walden in June 2017. Within a few years, she held ministerial responsibilities spanning education, the Treasury, equalities and international trade. After the 2024 general election, she represented North West Essex and moved from government into opposition. 1
A political outlook shaped across countries
In her maiden speech in July 2017, Badenoch described being born in Wimbledon, growing up in Nigeria and moving to Britain at sixteen. She connected her experiences of unreliable public services in Nigeria to her belief in markets, individual responsibility and limits on government. Her account of becoming a Conservative placed economic ideas alongside her personal route into British politics. 7
The speech also addressed the constituency she had begun to represent. Badenoch raised problems with mobile reception, broadband and railway services, arguing that opportunity in rural areas depended on adequate infrastructure. Alongside her wider political outlook, these were practical concerns about how constituents travelled, worked and connected with services. 7
Before Westminster
Badenoch studied engineering at the University of Sussex and law at Birkbeck. Her professional work included roles at Coutts and The Spectator, while she also spent nine years as a non-executive director of a London housing association. These experiences preceded her entry to the London Assembly in September 2015 as a London-wide Conservative member. 2
At City Hall, she was the Conservatives’ spokesperson on the economy and served on committees covering transport and policing. During 2016–17, she was deputy chair of the Economy and Health Committees. The Assembly provided experience of scrutiny across services affecting a large and varied population, before her election to Parliament. 2
Government responsibilities
Her first ministerial appointment was at the Department for Education in July 2019. She subsequently served in the Treasury and held equalities responsibilities. In September 2022, she became International Trade Secretary; after a departmental reorganisation in February 2023, she became Secretary of State for Business and Trade. She also served as Minister for Women and Equalities from October 2022 until July 2024. 1
Trade policy in practice
On 16 July 2023, Badenoch signed the treaty for the United Kingdom to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership in Auckland, New Zealand. The agreement linked the UK to a trade grouping across Asia and the Pacific. The government presented it as a route to wider export markets and investment, including reduced tariffs and changes affecting services and supply chains. 3
Signing followed negotiations and began a further stage involving parliamentary scrutiny and ratification in the participating countries. For the Business and Trade Secretary, the work combined international negotiation with the domestic task of explaining what the agreement would mean for businesses. Ministers from New Zealand, Canada, Japan and Australia were among those taking part in the ceremony. 3
Debates about equality and education
As Equalities Minister, Badenoch took part in the Commons debate on Black History Month in October 2020. She welcomed the recognition of Black contributions to Britain, while arguing that the existing curriculum already allowed teaching about empire, enslavement and migration. She opposed teaching critical race theory as uncontested fact and emphasised political impartiality in schools. Other MPs called for curriculum changes and a broader race equality strategy. The debate exposed substantial political disagreement about how schools and government should address racial inequality. 4
The leadership election
Following the Conservatives’ general election defeat in 2024, Rishi Sunak announced his departure as party leader. Six candidates entered the contest to replace him. Conservative MPs reduced the field through successive ballots, leaving Badenoch and Robert Jenrick for a vote of party members. On 2 November, Badenoch was announced as the winner with 56.5 per cent of the membership vote. 5
An opposition programme
By October 2026, Badenoch was leading the Conservatives and the official opposition. Opening the party conference in Birmingham on 4 October, she announced The Right Way, a statement of the principles she wanted to guide a future administration. She emphasised wealth creation, personal responsibility and judging government by its results. Her argument combined a state capable of carrying out its essential duties with restraint where individuals could make their own decisions. She presented the period in opposition as time to develop a governing programme before seeking office again. 6
Sources and further reading
1. Mrs Kemi Badenoch: Parliamentary Career. UK Parliament.
2. Kemi Badenoch: Past Staff. London City Hall.
3. UK Signs Treaty to Join Indo-Pacific Trade Group. Department for Business and Trade.
4. Black History Month, 20 October 2020. House of Commons Hansard.
5. Leadership Elections: Conservative Party. House of Commons Library.
6. The Leader’s Welcome, 4 October 2026. Conservative Party.
7. Kemi Badenoch’s Maiden Speech in the Commons. Kemi Badenoch.
Featured image. Kemi Badenoch in her official parliamentary portrait from July 2024. © House of Commons / Roger Harris, 15 July 2024, via Wikimedia Commons; source-provided crop. Image record · CC BY 3.0
