Reform faces councillor exodus as 12 set to quit over Farage

Uh oh. There’s trouble in paradise this evening as it has emerged that 12 Reform UK councillors are set to quit over Nigel Farage’s leadership. As reported by the Guardian, it transpires that the mass exodus could begin as early as tonight, with the announcement that the group intend to resign en mass timed to take the shine off Nige’s Surrey conference.

The group of Derbyshire councillors have, reports note, alleged that Reform was being run in an ‘autocratic manner’ and blasted Farage of ‘disloyalty’ to long-term members. While the party’s five MPs are staying put, the loss of these councillors will notably dent the party’s local authority representation. The outgoing 12 currently hold two district council seats, nine town council seats and five parish council seats. More than that, one of the disillusioned councillors includes Alex Stephenson, who was runner up in Amber Valley in the July election – taking almost a third of the vote.