To chortle my face off at this fucking farce from Reform

[Salemsplot]

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/oct/18/suck-it-up-leaked-video-exposes-bitter-infighting-at-reform-uks-flagship-kent-council

But in seriousness, imagine these kind of people running your council, let alone your country…

Do people not remember “you have no authority here Jackie Weaver”?

Local councillors are often like this, just a bunch of self proclaimed important people playing politics.

‘READ the standing orders! READ THEM AND UNDERSTAND THEM!’

By ‘they’, do you mean one shouty person that doesn’t have the team on board and whose colleagues are arguing it can’t be done?

Also. That’s a real commitment to typing all that out word for word…(Nigel?)

What was said that you’d approve of? Telling your colleagues to ‘fucking suck it up’ because they’re challenging the legalities of what you’re doing?

Yes. Everything has to start somewhere. Councils have allowed spiralling debts and council tax for years now. We need radical reform, because right now we are paying more and more for what is essentially a social care tax that means the rest of our counties are going to rack and ruin. I’m pleased they’re tackling this aggressively and yes I expect there will be upsets.

@Fgfgfg thank you

I don't see this as a sign of anything except a typical bullying boss. I don't want reform because I worry about racism and I think they have no experience of government. So I'm interested to know what's actually happening in Kent

Have you not heard of copy and paste? Are you writing to us from 1959 on a typewriter?

Yes.

Radical reform is needed.

Tories have failed. Labour have failed. The leader of the Greens thinks he can hypnotise people’s tits. Your Party is the British political wing of the Middle East, all they do is campaign on Gaza.

Let’s see how the books look and judge them on that.

If Reform got into power it would be like all the disasters of Johnson's government times 10 and on speed. The only consolation is that they wouldn't last long, but I hate to think of the horrific mess they would leave in their wake.

Exactly. Short but sweet destruction of all we have in the UK. Maybe it would eradicate the racists top, but that’s hopeful

Well, no. Let's see how the county as a whole looks, given that running the county is their job. Let's see how, for instance, they do in carrying out their social care responsibilities if they succeed in their aim of massively cutting down on immigration, always bearing in mind how dependent social services and care agencies now are on immigrant workers. Let's see how they do in terms of improving provision for children with special educational needs - current accounts are that they are managing those responsibilities appallingly.

@Fgfgfg this is what’s happening. It’s like toddlers at a play school. Can you imagine this in charge of the country?!

‘The people who did this are cowards. They are weak. They are foolish. They cannot cope with disappointment and personal inadequacies so they seek to bring down others to their level.”
Once rooted out, the culprits behind the leaks will have “no political future”, she said.
She told members: “I want you to know…I passed my suspicions of who is responsible for this treachery to head office and a thorough investigation is already underway.

It’s not, to me, about them fulfilling responsibilities as such. The responsibilities are vastly overpromised, unsustainable and bankrupting us. I’m far more interested in the balancing of the books.

You are right. Let’s judge them on what they do.

Then why do you think no council has managed to fulfil its duties regardless of party politics? Answer - because those duties are hugely overpromised and far too many people need support.

Ah, right! So we shouldn’t judge them on what they do!

#makereformvotersmakesenseplease

What they should ‘do’ is balance the books.

We were told that Reform UK would act in the interests of the residents of Kent but instead we have only seen chaotic management, bigotry and empty soundbites that help no-one.
The start of the Reform UK administration in May and June was marked by cancelled committee meetings and postponement to training sessions meaning vital decisions about Kent’s future were delayed.
The announcement of the ‘DOGE’ (Reform’s Department of Government Efficiency) cost cutting team on 2nd June was announced with great media fanfare. But then the Reform UK chairman and DOGE champion, Zia Yusef resigned from the party a few days later, as did the tech genius, Nathanial Fried, who was supposed to advise him [Yusuf returned to the fold after just a few days].
It’s all just theatre to keep Nigel Farage happy and unfortunately Kent residents are paying the price for it.

A Reform report into spending at Kent County Council was based largely on dubious claims made by the party’s own former chairman

Reform UK told voters they were going to save money — then they appointed a new Cabinet member for KCC’s own DOLGE team (the additional L is for local) at a cost of £36,000 a year.
Then they refused to back an opposition motion cancelling the generous allowance paid to deputy cabinet members.
On 3rd July 2025, it was reported that newly elected Reform UK member, Daniel Taylor, had appeared at Folkestone Magistrates’ Court charged with three offences (all of which he denied) accused of serious violent offences including allegations of threatening to murder his wife.
At the subsequent Full Council Meeting on 10th July, Kent’s Reform UK leader, Linden Kemkaran, refused to support an opposition motion to strengthen the council’s resolve against violence against women and girls, on the grounds that she alleged these crimes are predominantly being committed by non-British nationals. These claims were subsequently refuted by leading domestic abuse charities working in Kent.
EXCLUSIVE
Reform Council Bans All Mentions of Climate Change While Quietly Taking Green Funds From Government
Reform-run West Northamptonshire is removing all references to ‘climate change’ and ‘net zero’ from official documents, yet continuing to take government green grants
Josiah Mortimer
Then on the 7th July, KCC leader Linden Kemkaran issued an official statement to announce that Cllr Bill Barrett had made the decision to step down from his role as Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport. A few days later, Mr Barrett told the media he had been ambushed and sacked against his will, after a visit to KCC by Nigel Farage.
On 30th July, the new administration proudly announced £60 million of highways investment – but failed to mention these were agreed under the previous administration, or that there was no new money for fixing potholes.
The announcement of the £16 million reduction in KCC’s debt was also scheduled prior to the KCC elections this year and had nothing to do with Reform UK.
Cuts to Net Zero programmes and reversing the decision to sell off County Hall which is known as the “money pit” will cost Kent Council Taxpayers more money in the long term.
One hundred days in, and Reform UK has provided few ideas about where they are going to find £100 million of cuts required to balance the books— instead we just get more chaos and clickbait

I dunno about this. We’ve got Green and Lib Dem councillors around here and they are an absolute joke. Show up late to meetings, clearly haven’t done the slightest bit of prep, have to be told by parish councillors what their own remit as county councillors is versus district councillors (and vice versa), need help from constituents simply to write emails, and in one case told an elderly constituent that he would like to hit him. I have naff all time for Reform or the giant fraud frog Farage, but local government in general in this country is a talent and skill-free zone in which even basic manners are regarded as optional. Bloody depressing.

I don’t think it matters OP, not because I’m ‘Reform blind’ but because this is standard critique of a new party taking the reins. If they balance the books at the end of their term that’ll be job done. If not then they won’t have fulfilled their promise so chuck them. Nitpicking every small thing is silly because you could do that about anyone. Look, the greens have been naughty too!

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/feb/01/bristol-protests-green-led-council-cuts

https://www.thetimes.com/uk/society/article/green-council-announces-plans-that-would-make-thatcher-blush-kvhq3lffr

https://www.bristol247.com/news-and-features/news/greens-called-clueless-not-knowing-perilous-state-council-finances/

Yep. Making out this is unusually bad is disingenuous. I know council employees here who cheered when they heard Reform had been successful.

Bet they’re not bloody cheering now there’s a number of bullying claims and a lot of resignations

https://staffordshire.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/980236 Take a look at the questions at the end of this full council meeting, skip to item 17 and decide whether you think this is a group of elected people who are truly representing their community.

What county council and district council's do DOES matter, these are not small ‘parishes’ like the Jackie Weaver thing. Sadly when our services start to fail and not be delivered …for the elderly, SEN, children in care, children who need to be safeguarded, libraries , waste, highways etc….. it’s all going to be too late.

They’re fine. They’re tough cookies who have seen the rise and fall of numerous parties as leader. They know the urgent problem is finances and unless somebody is willing to be the toolbox hammer to tackle it, they’ll go further up shit cream without a paddle.