Sir James Cleverly has resigned from Kemi Badenoch's shadow cabinet with immediate effect as he launches a bid to become the Conservative candidate for Mayor of London in 2028.
The former Foreign Secretary and Home Secretary, who has been serving as shadow housing, communities and local government secretary, said London needed “a champion” and that he could not run an effective mayoral campaign while remaining tied to a national frontbench brief.
Cleverly, the Conservative MP for Braintree, has not yet been selected as the party's official candidate. His announcement is the launch of a campaign to win the Conservative nomination ahead of the next London mayoral election, scheduled for May 2028.
Cleverly leaves shadow cabinet with immediate effect
In an article for The Sunday Times, Cleverly said he had informed Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch that he was leaving the shadow cabinet.
He said serving on the front bench had been a privilege, but added that he needed to be free to speak across the full range of issues affecting the capital and to concentrate fully on the race for City Hall.
ITV News confirmed on Saturday afternoon that Cleverly was standing down from his shadow housing brief with immediate effect.
Bid for Conservative nomination
Cleverly has framed the campaign as an attempt to give London a higher-profile political advocate after a decade under Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan.
He said the capital needed more than an administrator and argued that its problems had been allowed to fester while its reputation had slipped at home and abroad.
His campaign is therefore not yet a direct general-election-style contest with Khan. Cleverly must first secure the Conservative nomination.
Khan, who has served as Mayor of London since 2016 and is currently in his third term, has not confirmed whether he will seek a fourth term in 2028.
Cleverly attacks Burnham over London
Cleverly has also used the launch to attack Prime Minister Andy Burnham's approach to the capital, accusing the Government of treating London as a “cash cow” through taxation and regulation.
The criticism gives the mayoral bid an immediate national political dimension. Cleverly is arguing that the Conservatives cannot rebuild nationally without demonstrating that they can once again compete seriously in London.
He has said that winning the capital would help strengthen the Conservative Party's wider electoral position and improve Badenoch's prospects of taking the party back into government.
Major vacancy for Badenoch
Cleverly's departure creates a significant vacancy on Badenoch's front bench at a time when the Conservative leader has been considering changes to her shadow cabinet.
The former Cabinet minister is one of the party's most experienced senior figures, having previously served as Foreign Secretary and Home Secretary.
His decision therefore removes a major figure from Badenoch's day-to-day Westminster team while simultaneously giving the Conservatives a heavyweight potential candidate for City Hall.
London becomes test of Conservative recovery
The 2028 mayoral election is likely to be an important test of whether the Conservatives can regain ground in the capital after a prolonged period of Labour dominance.
Khan won a third term in 2024, while the Conservatives have struggled across much of London in recent national and local contests.
Cleverly's candidacy for the Tory nomination signals an attempt to reverse that trend by putting forward one of the party's best-known national figures.
He is expected to use the Conservative Party conference in October to further develop his case for the nomination.
What happens next
The immediate next step is the Conservative selection process for its 2028 mayoral candidate.
Until that process is complete, Cleverly should be described as a candidate for the Conservative nomination rather than as the party's confirmed mayoral candidate.
At Westminster, Badenoch must now decide who replaces him as shadow housing, communities and local government secretary — and whether his departure forms part of a wider frontbench reshuffle.