Kemi Badenoch has dismissed accusations of 'whining and hypocrisy' from the Labour party regarding her characterization of Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson as a 'spiteful class warrior'. The verbal exchange, which escalated in the House of Commons, saw Badenoch refuse to back down from her comments.
Phillipson has stated her intention to have the 'spiteful class warrior' jibe printed on a T-shirt, accusing Badenoch of 'sinking lower and lower'. However, Badenoch countered by calling the outrage a display of 'hypocrisy', noting that Phillipson had accused Conservative frontbencher Nick Timothy of racism earlier in the same parliamentary session for questioning mass Muslim prayers in Trafalgar Square. "The hordes of Labour MPs rushing to Twitter to whine about me calling her 'spiteful' are just exposing their own hypocrisy. They love to dish it but they can't take it," Badenoch stated.
The exchanges occurred during Prime Minister's Questions, where the Opposition leader targeted several Cabinet ministers. Badenoch specifically criticized Phillipson's record, stating, "She taxed private schools to pay for more teachers, but the number of teachers has gone down. Appointing a spiteful class warrior as Education Secretary was a disaster."
Badenoch also directed criticism at Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband. A Conservative source alleged that the dispute continued after the session, with Phillipson aiming a barb at Badenoch, who reportedly responded, "I will fight you all the way, you're destroying children's lives."
A source close to Phillipson disputed this account, calling it 'confected'. They claimed that Phillipson and Science Secretary Liz Kendall confronted Badenoch over her earlier comments. According to this source, Badenoch ignored Kendall and told Phillipson, "You are spiteful. I'm never going to stop talking about how spiteful you are." The source close to Phillipson added that the Education Secretary told Badenoch, "The public are going to find out who you really are."
The conflict extended to social media, with Phillipson posting on X that Badenoch had "lost her head at PMQs - and afterwards too." Phillipson questioned the Conservative stance, stating, "I wonder what it is about a working-class woman driving record investment in state schools by ending private schools' tax breaks that the Tories hate so much?"
Badenoch replied on the platform, "'I grew up on a council estate' is not an excuse for failure. You are sacrificing the future of generations of kids on the altar of your class envy. I speak for those people whose lives you're destroying and I'll NEVER stop speaking up for them."
In an interview, Phillipson expressed that Badenoch seems to have an issue with individuals who are "proud of where we're from, proud to be working class, proud to be state school educated." She added, "It's a badge of pride that people like Kemi Badenoch call me a spiteful class warrior. If being a spiteful class warrior means lifting children out of poverty, delivering better life chances at school, investing in the support that our young people need, then I will wear that as a badge of honour." Phillipson concluded that Badenoch's remarks indicated a low level of discourse: "It says more about her that she sinks to this level. Every passing week at Prime Minister's Questions, she sinks lower and lower, completely devoid of any kind of grace."