Cleverly hits out at Braverman over 'Englishness' row

Sir James Cleverly has criticised former Conservative colleague Suella Braverman after she sparked a row around "Englishness".

It comes after Braverman, who is now part of Reform UK, drew controversy by saying she is British but not English as she is of "Asian origin".

Sir James, a former home and foreign secretary, said he thought it was "sad" that Braverman and her fellow Reform member Zia Yusuf felt "the need to amplify" people with "really quite vile positions" about ethnicity, race, and nationality.

He was speaking to Beth Rigby for the Electoral Dysfunction Insider podcast live recording from the Conservative Party conference.

"I can only speculate what's going on here," he said.

"It really feels as if Reform place some of the people - certainly not all, but some of the people - supporting Reform and particularly some of their outriders on social media have got some very, very, very distasteful views about race and ethnicity and nationality.

"And I think it's sad that, Suella and Yusuf and other people feel the need to amplify those really quite vile positions."

Another Tory-turned-Reform former colleague of Cleverly, Nadhim Zahawi, told Sky News on Sunday that he too disagreed with Braverman.

You can listen to the full conversation on the Sky News Insider edition of Electoral Dysfunction.

Subscribers to Sky News Insider will be able to enjoy ad-free access, bonus episodes and early releases. (Requires paid subscription. UK only. 18+).

Trump 'wrong' about London

Cleverly, who wants to become the Conservative candidate in the next London mayoral elections, was also asked about claims by US President Donald Trump that there are "no go" zones in the capital.

"Well, look, Donald Trump is just wrong. He's just wrong on this," Cleverly said.

"You know, there are things, there are plenty of things I disagree with him on, this is one of them.

"This is one of the ones I disagree with most passionately.

"But he is doing, sadly what a number of people do, which is looking at stuff on social media, which is being amplified by our enemies.

"And I don't mean that metaphorically - I mean literally there are nation states and non-state actors who are amplifying negative messages about the UK, particularly about London, because they want to do us harm."

He added that while there is a "fear of crime", the statistics for the UK "are better than almost any other big city in the world".

"And that is something that we should celebrate, we should be proud of.

"But, you know, being the best is great, but the aspiration should be to keep being better still."

For more live Electoral Dysfunction, come and join us on Thursday 26 November at the Cadogan Hall in London.

Sky News Insiders can access the discounted presale for the live show now.

Sky News Insider requires a subscription. Terms and Conditions apply, UK only, 18+

(c) Sky News 2026: Cleverly hits out at Braverman over 'Englishness' row