Badenoch says she did 'everything she could' during local elections

The Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said she did "every single thing [she] could" during the local elections, which saw her party almost entirely wiped out on Kent County Council.

The May ballot saw the Conservatives lose 57 of the authority's 81 seats, with Reform UK winning 57. It was described as "apocalyptic" by the former Tory council leader.

Speaking to BBC South East ahead of her party's autumn conference in Manchester, Badenoch said the "historic defeat" was down to people looking to "protest parties" instead.

"My job right now is to show people the Conservative Party has changed, win back the public trust, and demonstrate that we're the only party that can deliver both a strong economy and strong borders," she said.