LONDON — The U.K. Conservatives want to ditch their reputation for psychodrama. That might be easier said than done.

Kemi Badenoch on Wednesday called a punchy press conference in London to claim the Conservatives are “a party of serious people” — despite seeing three of her MPs defect to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK just this month.

The Tories were brutally ousted from office in 2024 after years of plotting and in-fighting which saw the party led by five different prime ministers after the 2016 Brexit vote. 

Badenoch now claims only her party can be trusted to govern the country competently. The Tories are “a party of serious people, not drama queens,” she said.

Voters — and her own MPs — are not yet convinced.

Badenoch continues to languish in the polls, and ex-Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick, veteran MP Andrew Rosindell and former Home Secretary Suella Braverman have all jumped ship to Reform UK this month claiming Britain is broken thanks to the Conservatives.

The Tory leader laid into those former colleagues, accusing them of having “a tantrum dressed up as politics.”

“I’m sorry you didn’t win the leadership contest. I’m sorry you didn’t get a job in the shadow cabinet. I’m sorry you didn’t get into the Lords,” Badenoch said, accusing them of “not offering a plan to fix this country.”

Badenoch also jumped on in-fighting in the ruling Labour Party, accusing its MPs of “scheming to get in a new contender to challenge the prime minister.”

Keir Starmer faced a backlash from some of his MPs after stopping Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, who has been critical of the PM, from applying for selection in a crucial Westminster by-election.

Burnham’s candidacy was blocked by Labour’s ruling body Sunday to the disgruntlement of left-wing MPs.

“Everyone is fed up with this style of politics,” Badenoch said. “We are right, they are all wrong,” she said.

A Labour Party spokesperson rejected the new calm characterization, saying: “The public will not trust arsonists complaining about the fire they set. The Conservatives are not serious, they’re not sorry, and are too consumed with holding together their terminally broken party.”