Kemi Badenoch has insisted she is doing “well” as Tory leader, despite mounting concern in the party at the start she has made in the job. The former Conservative cabinet minister succeeded Rishi Sunak in the role after defeating Robert Jenrick in November.

The Conservative leader claimed the process of rebuilding the party was a “marathon, not a sprint” and warned there were a number of challenges to face, including the local elections which she said would be “very difficult”.

Voters have delivered a damning verdict on Kemi Badenoch’s start as Tory leader. The number who think she is a “prime minister in waiting” has fallen during her first six weeks in the job, according to a YouGovpoll.