Kemi Badenoch: Let bosses ban burkas in the workplace

Bosses should have the right to ban staff from wearing burkas and other face coverings in the workplace, Kemi Badenoch has said.

The Tory leader also hit out at sharia courts and first-cousin marriage for acting as an “insidious” barrier to integration.

She said that she had “strong views about face coverings” and would not allow people into her constituency surgeries if they wore face veils .

It came after the debate on banning burkas was reignited last week when Reform’s chairman Zia Yusuf quit amid a row over the issue, before rejoining the party in spectacular fashion on Saturday night.

Mrs Badenoch said that while Britain could impose a nationwide ban on the burka, there were bigger issues around integration that needed to be addressed.

These included sharia courts and cousin