Tom Tugendhat to replace Priti Patel as shadow foreign secretary

BBC News has been told that former Tory leadership candidate Tom Tugendhat will replace Dame Priti Patel as shadow foreign secretary. The move, first reported by the Daily Telegraph, will see Tugendhat return to the Conservative front bench when Kemi Badenoch reshuffles her team next month. Dame Priti announced on social media that she is leaving the front bench position to take up a new role focused on strengthening links with sister parties and centre right movements around the world. The reshuffle comes after shadow housing secretary Sir James Cleverly resigned to run for London mayor. Tugendhat, a former security minister and British Army reserve officer, has been a backbencher since 2024. He previously served as security minister under Liz Truss and Boris Johnson and chaired the Foreign Affairs Select Committee for five years. Dame Priti was appointed to the shadow cabinet after finishing sixth in the 2024 leadership election and previously served as home secretary under Boris Johnson. She will continue as MP for Witham. The reshuffle was already expected due to shadow energy secretary Claire Coutinho's upcoming maternity leave. Speculation persists that shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride could also lose his job, though party sources have played this down. Coutinho is viewed as a likely future shadow chancellor, but it is unlikely she will be appointed while on leave. Badenoch will also need to replace Sir James as shadow housing secretary; he has not yet been selected as the party's candidate for the May 2028 London mayoral election.