Overview
Elected to Parliament at the 2014 Newark by-election, Robert Jenrick slowly built up favour in a number of junior government jobs, before rising to prominence in 2019 when Boris Johnson appointed him as Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government.
It was reported that Jenrick was nicknamed “Robert Generic” by his colleagues, in an allusion to his mild-mannered, lawyerly political style.
Although Jenrick was sacked from the government by Boris Johnson in September 2021, he subsequently returned to the government as minister of immigration — a cabinet-attending post.
However, Jenrick — once considered a friend and political ally of prime minister Rishi Sunak — resigned his post on 6 December 2023.
It came as a protest against the newly announced Safety of Rwanda Bill, which Jenrick argued did not go far enough to ensure the successful implementation of the government’s flagship asylum and deportation scheme.
His resignation statement read: “I am unable to take the currently proposed legislation through the Commons as I do not believe it provides us with the best possible chance of success. A Bill of the kind you are proposing is a triumph of hope over experience”.
It prompted speculation that Jenrick, whose former immigration post was subsequently split in two, harbours leadership ambitions.
Whatever Jenrick’s future achievements, this line in his maiden speech has humbling potential: ‘There are, after all, no final victories in politics; all achievements, however hard won, can be and are undone’.
Robert Jenrick resigned as immigration minister in December 2023.
Political Career
Having won the Newark by-eleciton with a 7,403 vote majority, Mr Jenrick served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Employment Minister Esther McVey (2015), to Justice Secretaries Michael Gove (2015-2016) and Lizz Truss (2016-2017), and then to Home Secretary Amber Rudd (2017).
He was appointed Exchequer Secretary in January 2018. As Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Jenrick was the youngest male Minister in the government.
In 2019, Jenrick received a significant promotion to the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. Jenrick is the youngest member of Boris Johnson’s Cabinet. He held the post for two years, and hosted a number of Downing Street press conferences during the 2020-2021 Coronavirys pandemic.
During the crisis, Jenrick also attracted a certain amount of unwanted attention, having allegedly driven 150 miles to his parents’ home in Herefordshire to drop off medicine during the first national lockdown. Jenrick was backed by number 10 who said: ‘The Secretary of State has set out in two different statements the reasons for the journeys which he made, and we’re confident he complied with the social distancing rules’.
He was appointed Minister of State at the Department of Health and Social care by short-lived prime minister Liz Truss.
Rishi Sunak, a long-time ally of Jenrick, subsequently appointed him as minister for immigration, serving under home secretary Suella Braverman.
He resigned his post in December 2023.
Robert Jenrick and Richmond Desmond
At a fund-raising dinner held in November 2019, Robert Jenrick, was seated next to developer and newspaper proprietor, Richard Desmond. At the time Desmond was looking for planning permission approval for a £1 billion luxury housing initiative in East London.
In his role as Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, Jenrick subsequently overruled a previous decision which had stopped Mr Desmond going ahead with the development.
Jenrick came under fire for failing to declare his interaction with Douglas, but has strongly denied anything inappropriate occurred.
Political Views
Jenrick backed ‘Remain’ in the 2016 referendum, but he toed the party line at all times during the Brexit process. He voted to trigger Article 50, for May’s Withdrawal Agreement, for Johnson’s Withdrawal Agreement and, finally, for Johnson’s post-Brexit trade deal.
Jenrick was also quick to support Johnson in his 2019 Conservative Party leadership campaign.
He, Rishi Sunak and Oliver Dowden spoke to Johnson for an hour in Jenrick’s home before penning a Times article entitled ‘The Tories are in deep peril. Only Boris Johnson can save us’. All three individuals were subsequently rewarded with senior government jobs by the new Tory Prime Minister.
Jenrick is a member of the Conservative Friends of Israel. Jenrick’s wife is Jewish and the daughter of Holocaust survivors.
Jenrick provoked controversy in a speech at a Conservative Friends of Israel reception when he said: ‘I look forward to Britain’s Israel embassy moving to Jerusalem’. President Donald Trump sparked international backlash when moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem in May 2018.
Rwanda bill: Robert Jenrick dismisses ‘contested notions of international law’
Background
How old is Robert Jenrick?
Robert Edward Jenrick was born on the 9th of January 1982. Jenrick was educated at Wolverhampton Grammar School.
What did Robert Jenrick do before entering Politics?
After graduating from St John’s College, Cambridge University, Jenrick spent a year studying Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania. He proceeded to become a solicitor, working for American firms in Moscow and in London.
Before becoming a Tory MP, Jenrick worked as a Director for Christie’s Auction House.
Is Robert Jenrick Married?
Jenrick is married to Michal, a corporate lawyer, nine years his senior. The couple have three daughters who they are raising in the Jewish faith.
Contact Details
Twitter – @RobertJenrick
Facebook – @RobertJenrickNewark
Personal Website – https://robertjenrick.com
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