Reform party

[TalkToTheHand123]

Will Reform win any votes at the local elections?

This thread is about small boat crossings to the UK so that is what I am talking about. I don't think the OP is interested in a wider immigration discussion.

OP thinks brexit is a great success whilst ignoring that the boat crossings are a brexit 'benefit'

And now she wants to strip those people of their human rights, legal protections and put them in camps

There aren't local elections where I am but I read up on local Reform candidates. Their concerns were local issues such as Palestinian flags on council property, cladding, leasehold, a tax on businessess that employ migrants and bad mouthing the Tories.

No mention whatsoever of removing asylum seekers from HO accommodation and putting them in tents around the area. No mention of small boats at all.

I'm wondering if the OP even knows who their local Reform candidate is.

Why make up stuff and say I have wrote it?

I would say this is not 'right wing'. It's a shift towards authoritarianism, institutional cruelty and casual dehumanisation.

Asylum claims were over 100k in 2002. We hadn’t left yet.

Lorries or boats does that part matter? It’s still a threat to life.

Brexit is literally responsible for making childhood cancers less affordable to treat. Slow clap for brexit fanatics.

I've asked you several times what your local Reform candidate is proposing and why you're voting for them. You keep talking about small boats and putting asylum seekers in tents.

Local candidates have no power whatsoever over small boats and can't remove asylum seekers from home office accommodation, so I've no idea why you keep talking about it.

I didn’t vote for Brexit but those connecting what’s going on globally to just this country are missing Germany, Italy etc

It’s pretty easy to see if you look outside Brexit / UK.

I want the dangerous journeys stopped but not in the way the OP is proposing

People shouldn't have to risk their lives on a small boat (or lorry) to be able to claim asylum in the UK

100K is still a very small percentage of the total UK population.

https://www.ein.org.uk/news/asylum-claims-reached-record-high-108000-2024-new-home-office-immigration-statistics-show

Tbf the increase in support for Reform means Starmer is proposing new immigration policies. Eg the recent Balkans proposal.

There’s still a way to go and if Labour are at hubs already we’ll see how far they go to try and retain power.

Nigel Farage has defended allowing labelled chlorinated chicken from the US into the UK as part of a trade deal, as a poll suggested his Reform UK party could be on course to take the highest number of seats at a general election.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/apr/20/nigel-farage-defends-allowing-us-chlorinated-chicken-into-uk-as-part-of-trade-deal

I personally will absolutely be getting more involved in local politics in the run up to the next GE (not sure yet which party will make the most sense to support but anything to keep Reform out). This time around the threat is too big, the price of letting these guys in is too great. Come on! Why would we vote to become a pseudo US colony?!! Cause that's exactly what's on the cards. We cannot seriously have traded our seat as one of the most influential players within the EU (thanks to the size of our economy) for a slightly richer version of Puerto Rico! With Fuckers Inc in power in the US, we will only be treated with contempt. Why? Because we are not them, that's all. They will fleece and plunder our country. Let's not be fucking turkeys.

Chlorine is often used in the wash water for bagged salad, but it's important to note that the concentration is typically lower than in drinking water.

US use of chlorate is because of poor hygiene in the farming process.

A 2014 report by US non-profit Consumer Reports found that 97 per cent of 300 American chicken breasts tested contained harmful bacteria including Salmonella, campylobacter and E.Coli.

It’s not so much that the chlorine that will kill you but the harmful bacteria could!

^^this.
But really what I'm concerned about is a more systemic lowering of our standards and the Americanisation of much of our society without any of the positives you might find in the actual US. Not to mention the fact that they will meddle with our politics like never before. No thanks. I was already not too keen on a comprehensive USUK trade deal before Trump because of the implications for our trade relationship with the EU; it is in fact a binary choice: we can't let in US goods at the lower standards they want if we want to keep trading with the EU. Now that we have Trump 2, I think it's utter madness.

We might have a trade deal via Labour before then though. I haven’t read details lately but could include removal of digital services tax, standards, AI, NHS stuff.

Farage will sell off everything to the States and strip us off our human rights including labour laws. We'll end up like the States with no maternity rights, holidays or any other statutory rights.

He'll lower taxes and we won't have any money to pay for anything.

I would never forgive Labour for that.

Nor would I. Or pretty much anyone who’s ever voted for them.

Well my vote for Reform has been posted as have those of my family.
I don't care how Reform stop the boats as long as they do.

All the best. I'm sure they'll be great locally.

So excuse my ignorance here

But it seems that there are many areas not actually included in the upcoming local elections; London being the big one. Massive parts of the country aren’t being polled as far as I can see.

So surely any attempt to look at the vote results as some sort of litmus test for labour govt approval or perhaps support for reform aren’t really true?

The country has always voted according to geographic areas; or at least they’re very important when looking at the whole picture.

So is it fair to say they won’t actually tell us all that much? (Certainly in terms of how the overall population is feeling)

Up for election in May 2025 are:

14 county councils: Twelve of these are currently controlled by the Conservatives, while two fall under no overall control with the Liberal Democrats as the biggest party. Seven county council elections have been postponed following applications by the local authority to government.

8 unitary authorities:
Eight unitary authorities are holding whole council elections. Seven of these councils are currently controlled by the Conservatives, with one under no overall control. Two unitary authority elections have been postponed following applications by the local authority to government.

One metropolitan borough: All 55 members of Doncaster City Council are up for election, as well as the position of Mayor of Doncaster, who acts as leader of the council. This is the only Labour-controlled council up for election in May 2025.

The North Tyneside mayoralty: The only other local authority mayor up for election is the mayor of North Tyneside, who acts as leader of the local council. The post is currently held by Labour.

3 combined authority mayors: Anna Smith will be hoping to succeed Nik Johnson as Labour Mayor for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, while Helen Godwin hopes to succeed Dan Norris as Labour Mayor for the West of England. The Hull and West Yorkshire Combined Authority will hold mayoral elections for the first time.

1 combined county authority mayoralty: The position of Mayor of Greater Lincolnshire is also up for election for the first time.

Most of these are Conservative held at the moment so it would be mainly swing from them to Reform - not Labour.

Labour will be looking at Runcorn and the MRP / mega poll which puts Reform in the lead. And Wales.

If places held for 40 years or however long can swing then it will influence policy.

A local council will find this somewhat difficult given it’s not within its remit.

Map of upcoming Local elections