Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch rushed into damage control mode on Friday, claiming that her shadow home secretary, Chris Philp, “won” in a conversation with Reform UK’s Zia Yusuf in the migrant-rocked town of Piddington.
In a lengthy X post, she claimed Yusuf “made an arse of himself,” after Yusuf had demanded the Conservatives apologise for their immigration record. Tory figures such as Badenoch and Philp have since been “ratioed” on their X posts, with thousands of people echoing Yusuf’s demands for an official Tory apology.
Badenoch was slated last month for claiming the Piddington migrant crisis is “not an immigration issue.” The Tory leader’s desperation to change the topic away from immigration stems from the fact that most of her party is still pro-mass migration, despite the leadership’s claims to the contrary.
At Friday’s press conference in Piddington, organised by parish chairman Tim McNally, Yusuf demanded an apology, as The National Pulse reported.
“It’s obviously true that we would not be gathered here today and 1,200 men would not be being dumped into this beautiful village were it not for the actions of the Conservative government,” Yusuf said. “So I actually want to ask you Chris [Philp], would you actually like to apologise for the things you did in government to bring hundreds of thousands of people into this country illegally?” He told Philp that “the notion that you had no involvement, you know that that’s not true. You were heavily involved in immigration and borders policy for the Conservative Party.”
Philp was Tory immigration compliance minister when net migration was 384,000, and was still a Home Office minister when it peaked at 944,000.
Reform UK said: “The Tories still won’t apologise for the biggest immigration betrayal in our history.” Nigel Farage wrote: “Chris Philp has a lot to apologise for. Including the two men charged yesterday with spying for Iran, who came to the country illegally.”
Labour’s Home Office announced the MoD Bicester Site A proposal on 25 June 2026. Angela Rayner granted planning permission on 12 November under urgent Crown Development powers.
