A SCOTTISH Reform UK candidate has come under fire after she called for the deportation of Muslims in a series of social media posts.
In messages unearthed by ITV Border, Galloway and West Dumfries Holyrood candidate Senga Beresford has been found to have endorsed a post that called for the UK to “deport the lot of them”, in reference to Muslims.
Scottish Reform UK candidate backed far-right activist Tommy Robinson
Councillors walk out of migration emergency debate
Kent County Council has declared an “illegal migration emergency” after opposition councillors walked out of a debate in protest.
The authority passed a motion, put forward by Reform UK councillors, stating that the county was a “frontier for the influx of illegal migrants” and residents were “dealing with the consequences”.
Other parties chose to leave the chamber ahead of the vote, claiming the debate breached electoral rules ahead of a by-election for the Cliftonville ward, with Liberal Democrat group leader Antony Hook stating that the motion was “based on prejudicial, discriminatory assumptions”.
Councillors walk out of migration emergency debate, BBC
Key phrases from this article include:
- divisive fantasy debates staged during a vital pre-by-election period
- stunt for political purposes during an election
- complained to the Electoral Commission
Revealed: Reform UK Matt Goodwin’s Academic Ties to Rebranded Nazi Eugenics Front
Reform’s Gorton and Denton candidate, who has said that genetics will expose the “inherent differences between groups” has links to multiple organisations tied to discredited racist pseudoscience
Matthew Goodwin, Reform UK’s candidate in the Gorton and Denton by-election in Greater Manchester, holds a visiting professorship at a university centre whose network includes the front publication for a reconstituted Nazi eugenics foundation. Byline Times can reveal that Goodwin has actively defended, promoted and cited key figures within the network, which encompasses at least five organisations tied to discredited racist pseudoscience.
Revealed: Reform UK Matt Goodwin’s Academic Ties to Rebranded Nazi Eugenics Front, bylinetimes.com
Reform UK would reimpose two-child benefit cap
Reform UK has said it would reintroduce the two-child benefit cap in full if the party wins power, in a shift away from scrapping the limit.
The policy, introduced under the Conservatives in 2017, means parents can only claim universal credit or tax credits for their first two children.
Reform UK would reimpose two-child benefit cap, BBC
Councillor quits ‘sinister’ Restore Britain after just two days
A North Northamptonshire local councillor has quit Restore Britain just two days day after defecting to it from Reform, describing Rupert Lowe’s new party “far more sinister than I first thought”.
Cllr Darren Rance, who represents Brickhill and Queensway, announced on Wednesday that he and fellow councillor Jack Goncalvez were leaving Reform to join Restore Britain, the hard‑right party announced by Rupert Lowe last week.
Councillor quits ‘sinister’ Restore Britain after just two days, searchlightmagazine.com
Kent county councillor from Margate jailed over years of controlling abuse of wife
A Kent county councillor has been jailed for 12 months after admitting to subjecting his wife to years of controlling and coercive behaviour.
Daniel Taylor, 35, from Margate, was sentenced at Margate Magistrates’ Court today after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing.
Kent county councillor from Margate jailed over years of controlling abuse of wife
Thanet deserved better than Reform’s Daniel Taylor
For nearly ten months now, the residents of Cliftonville have been throwing away hard earned taxes, on an elected representative that deceived them from the start.
Reform UK relentlessly sold Taylor to Cliftonville as a ‘devoted family man’ without bothering to properly look into his background. But as we all know now, this is no isolated incident.
Thanet deserved better than Reform’s Daniel Taylor, thanetlibdems.uk
Lib Dems win by-election after Reform controversy
The Liberal Democrats have won a council by-election which saw Reform withdraw support for its candidate over offensive social media posts.
Zetland ward voters elected Alison Barnes to Teesside’s Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council on Thursday, following the resignation of Independent councillor Jonny Neal.
Lib Dems win by-election after Reform controversy, BBC
Reform UK councillor defects to Restore Britain
A Reform UK councillor in Leicestershire has defected to a new party recently launched by MP Rupert Lowe.
Charles Whitford, previously a member of Leicestershire County Council’s cabinet, announced he had moved to Restore Britain on Thursday.
Reform UK councillor defects to Restore Britain, BBC
Reform wants to put public unions ‘under review’, by-election candidate has said
Comments late last year indicate challenges Farage faces in courting working-class voters
Reform UK’s candidate for the Gorton and Denton by-election has said the party would put public sector unions “under review” if it came to power, in a sign of the challenges Nigel Farage faces as he seeks to court working-class voters.
“[Reform] will place public sector trade unions under review,” Matthew Goodwin said during a speech in early December, before the by-election had been called, at which he set out a wide-ranging policy vision for a Reform government to “fix broken Britain”.
Reform wants to put public unions ‘under review’, by-election candidate has said, ft.com
Two Northants Reform UK councillors quit party to join new rival
More musical chairs as two North unitary councillors quit Reform UK to join Restore Britain
Two Reform UK councillors on North Northamptonshire Council have sensationally quit the party today to join a newly formed rival.
Cllr Jack Goncalvez (Rushden Lakes ward) and Darren Rance (Brickhill & Queensway ward) have been announced as new councillors by the Restore Britain party, which was launched on Friday evening by former Reform UK MP Rupert Lowe.
They follow a number of other councillors from Kent County Council in joining the new party, with Cllr Goncalvez accusing his former party of ‘courting the establishment it claims to oppose’.
Two Northants Reform UK councillors quit party to join new rival, NN Journal
‘I wouldn’t touch a Jewish woman’: Meet the Reform team in Gorton and Denton
Earlier this week, the anti-fascist campaign group Hope Not Hate passed us their research into Goodwin’s fellow campaigners. They had identified five separate individuals who had been out campaigning with Goodwin who had shared racist content online or expressed support for far-right groups. In some cases, there is little grey area: Goodwin’s campaigners have expressed clear support for the far-right group Britain First, baselessly suggested that 60-70% of transgender people are paedophiles or posted online that Muslims are only in the UK because they wish to “conquer” it.
‘I wouldn’t touch a Jewish woman’: Meet the Reform team in Gorton and Denton, manchestermill.co.uk
Reform faces police investigation over ‘concerned neighbour’ byelection letters
Material distributed in Gorton and Denton did not have legally required imprint stating it was funded by party
Reform UK will face a police investigation in Gorton and Denton after admitting it sent out letters from a “concerned neighbour” which did not state they had been funded and distributed by the party.
Greater Manchester police confirmed it had received a report about the breach of electoral law and said it would investigate. The Electoral Commission said the omission was a matter for the police, stressing that failing “to include an imprint in candidate election material is an offence”.
Dozens of voters in the Gorton and Denton constituency reported receiving letters from a pensioner written in a handwriting-style font on Friday. The letters do not include an imprint saying who they have been funded and distributed by, as required by electoral law.
Reform faces police investigation over ‘concerned neighbour’ byelection letters, The Guardian
Reform UK just broke electoral law in Gorton and Denton
People across the constituency thought they were getting a letter from a concerned pensioner, they didn’t know she was working for Reform
Every letter is addressed, both on the envelope and at the head of the letter, to the residents of the property, by name, suggesting whoever sent them has access to the electoral register. One recipient of the letter who wrote in, told us that the name on her letter was indeed her real name – but not the name that any of her friends (or neighbours) know her by. This same recipient has opted out of the Open Register, meaning that her name should only be accessible to political parties or their agents for legitimate campaigning purposes. Crucially, not one person we spoke to knew of a Patricia Clegg in the area. “Just to be clear, I have no idea who she is and if she is even real,” wrote one recipient.
Exclusive: Reform UK just broke electoral law in Gorton and Denton, The Mill
Analysis of Reform UK proposal for income tax cuts in Scotland
The biggest direct beneficiaries of such a change would be the high-income taxpayers who currently pay substantially more in income tax than in the rest of the UK
…
But this does not properly confront the challenges they would face in finding £2 billion or more of spending cuts in the coming parliament.
Analysis of Reform UK proposal for income tax cuts in Scotland, ifs.org.uk
White supremacist dating site profiles linked to Tory and Reform councillors
[…]
People found by The Observer in the database appear to include an ex-member of the British National Party, activists with the neo-Nazi group Patriotic Alternative, and a man who ran for political office for Britain First.
[…]
A user called Gavin Beales also appeared in the database. An email associated with the profile, set up in 2019, shares a name with a Reform councillor elected in November and also appears to be from the same part of Northamptonshire.
White supremacist dating site profiles linked to Tory and Reform councillors, The Observer
Police assess claims Reform UK breached electoral law during Farage campaign
Party denies ex-councillor’s claim it falsely reported expenses during Farage’s run to become Clacton MP last year
[…]
Richard Everett, a former Reform UK councillor and member of Farage’s campaign team, reportedly submitted documents to police showing the party spent more than the £20,660 limit in the Essex constituency.
Police assess claims Reform UK breached electoral law during Farage campaign, The Guardian
Reform UK Kent County Council leader Linden Kemkaran breaks silence over leaked video with ‘obnoxious’ message
Embattled Reform UK council leader Linden Kemkaran has broken her silence over a leaked video of her swearing and shouting at members which has plunged her administration into crisis.
Reform UK Kent County Council leader Linden Kemkaran breaks silence over leaked video with ‘obnoxious’ message, Kent Online
What we get wrong about unpaid carers
It’s worth thinking about this pre-NHS landscape of health care in Britain, as we weigh up the dire state of social care and support for family carers today. Although health spending takes up an increasing amount of public spending – it was the main beneficiary of last year’s unpopular tax rises – few would openly call for the restoration of the pre-NHS insurance system (though read between the lines of Reform UK’s manifesto, and it’s a different matter).
What we get wrong about unpaid carers, www.transformingsociety.co.uk
Expulsions ‘a sorry state of affairs’, Reform KCC leader
The leader of Reform UK-run Kent County Council has described the suspensions and expulsions of councillors from her party as “a sorry state of affairs”.
Linden Kemkaran was speaking after five of her colleagues were expelled for bringing the party into disrepute.
It followed a leaked recording of a video meeting in which Kemkaran was seen shouting and swearing at other Reform councillors.
Expulsions ‘a sorry state of affairs’, Reform KCC leader, BBC
Kent shows Reform does not know how to govern
The problems that the council is facing suggests Nigel Farage’s party is far from ready to exercise power
[…]
For Reform, east of Edenbridge became an Eden; during a fractious internal party meeting during which council members attempted to discuss the budget, leaked by councillors, leader of the council Linden Kemkaran said: “We are a shop window. People are judging us every single minute of every single day – Nigel knows that, he is super aware that we are the flagship council.”
But like Eden, not everyone is capable of indefinitely living in paradise. Four members were initially suspended under suspicion of leaking the video, and five have now been removed from the party for bringing it into “disrepute” and displaying a “lack of integrity”.
Kent shows Reform does not know how to govern, telegraph.co.uk
Reform UK expels two Kent councillors accused of ‘undermining’ its interests
Robert Ford, subject of an ‘unofficial complaint’, and Bill Barrett, suspended after leaked meeting, removed via email
Two suspended Reform UK councillors from Kent have been expelled from the party over a misconduct allegation and after the Guardian published a leaked video which revealed tensions among its county council ranks.
Robert Ford and Bill Barrett were removed from the party via an email from Reform HQ on Monday, which said they had “undermined” the interests of the party and brought it into “disrepute”.
Ford and Barrett sat on Kent county council alongside Oliver Bradshaw, Paul Thomas and Maxine Fothergill, who were also suspended last week. The Guardian understands Thomas, Bradshaw and Fothergill remain suspended pending investigation.
Reform UK expels two Kent councillors accused of ‘undermining’ its interests, theguardian.com
Five Reform UK councillors booted out of party
Five Reform UK county councillors have been expelled from the party for bringing it into “disrepute” and displaying a “lack of integrity”.
Kent councillors Bill Barrett and Robert Ford, who criticised the party’s “toxic” and “incompetent” leadership, were kicked out by email from Reform HQ, which said they had undermined the interests of the party.
Councillors Oliver Bradshaw, Brian Black, and Paul Thomas were also expelled for showing “a pattern of dishonest and deceptive behaviour which the party will not tolerate”, Reform UK said.
It comes after a damaging video leak showing the Reform UK leader of Kent County Council (KCC) Linden Kemkaran swearing and shouting during a council meeting.
Five Reform UK councillors booted out of party. BBC
Reform UK expels three more Kent county councillors for ‘dishonest and deceptive’ behaviour
Reform UK has expelled another three county councillors from the party this afternoon alleging “a pattern of dishonest and deceptive behaviour”.
The dismissals of Cllrs Brian Black, Paul Thomas and Oliver Bradshaw brings to five the number of expulsions from the Kent County Council group in the past four days.
Reform UK expels three more Kent county councillors for ‘dishonest and deceptive’ behaviour, Kent Online
How many councillors has Reform UK lost since May? (36)
Here is a list of the councillors which Reform has shed from the May 2025 local elections. The latest updates are the addition of three more defections in Cornwall, reinforcing Reform’s loss of largest party status on the council, plus also another three expulsions in Kent. Plus bonus news from Grantham…
How many councillors has Reform UK lost since May?, Mark Pack
Reform UK suspends four Kent councillors after leaked video
Party accuses council members of bringing Reform ‘into disrepute’ as film of private meeting shows fractious dispute
Reform UK has suspended four of its Kent councillors after a video was leaked of the council’s leader telling her colleagues to “suck it up”.
Reform UK suspends four Kent councillors after leaked video, ft.com
Reform’s first crack at power is already in crisis
The party’s performance in Kent shows it is nowhere near ready for government
[…]
Antony Hook, leader of the Liberal Democrats in Kent, says Reform was convinced they could make large savings from cutting the county’s budget on asylum seekers.
“They were really fixated on it. Every question they’d ask would be about the cost of asylum. We kept explaining that KCC doesn’t have that large a role in that and how it’s mainly a Home Office expense.
“We tried to explain that the big problem is adult social care, but they would just say: ‘What about asylum?’
“This is where reality has now collided with ideology. They said they’d take their chainsaw to a forest of waste. But the chainsaw seems to have been made out of sponge, and rather than a forest they’ve found an open field where there’s nothing to use it on.”
Reform’s first crack at power is already in crisis, The Telegraph
Poll predicts East Hampshire could turn Lib Dem as Reform UK surge across county
East Hampshire could switch from Conservative to Liberal Democrat if an election were held today, according to a new YouGov poll.
The survey also predicts that nine Hampshire constituencies would be won by Reform UK.
The second YouGov poll of 13,000 voters since the last general election projects a Reform UK government winning 311 seats, just 15 short of a majority.
Poll predicts East Hampshire could turn Lib Dem as Reform UK surge across county, farnhamherald.com
Richard Tice has 15-year record of supporting ‘net stupid zero’ initiatives
Firms led by deputy Reform UK leader since 2011 have shown commitment to saving energy and cutting CO2 emissions
He never seems to tire of deriding “net stupid zero”, but Reform UK’s deputy leader, Richard Tice, has a 15-year business record of support for sustainability and green energy initiatives.
The Reform party has made opposition to green energy and net zero part of its policy platform. Its founder, Nigel Farage, has called net zero policies a “lunacy”; the party has called to lift the ban on fracking for fossil gas; and one of the first Reform-led councils, Kent, rescinded last month its declaration of a climate emergency.
Richard Tice has 15-year record of supporting ‘net stupid zero’ initiatives, Damien Gayle Environment correspondent, The Guardian, Fri 10 Oct 2025
Doncaster Council: Reform UK secures unplanned full council meeting to re-appoint committee chairs
Reform UK have secured an extraordinary meeting of the City of Doncaster Council in attempts to regain control of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee (OSMC).
The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) understands the meeting, scheduled for October 23, 2025, will see the party nominate new chairs and vice-chairs of various council committees.
A group spokesperson declined to comment on their exact plans for the meeting, including on who they would be nominating to chair key committees.
Doncaster Council: Reform UK secures unplanned full council meeting to re-appoint committee chairs, Doncaster Free Press
Do Britons think Reform UK are racist? (mostly, yes)
Labour are attempting to take the fight to Reform UK, with Keir Starmer describing the rival party’s proposal to scrap indefinite leave to remain as “racist”, while home secretary Shabana Mahmood has branded Nigel Farage of “worse than racist” dog-whistle politics.
A new YouGov survey conducted for ITV Peston finds that more than four in ten Britons consider the Reform UK party (47%), policies (46%) and voters (43%) to be “generally racist”. This compares to 35-36% in each case who disagree, believing them to generally not be racist.
Do Britons think Reform UK are racist?, YouGov
Reform councillor and Tommy Robinson allies back ‘completely untrue’ RE claims
A Reform UK councillor chaired a meeting at which a Welsh far-right hate group spread ‘untrue’ claims about religious education, a Swansea primary school has claimed.
Reform councillor Francesca O’Brien chaired the meeting alongside members of Voice of Wales – a group designated as a hate organisation by Hope Not Hate, with links to the former English Defence League leader Tommy Robinson. The meeting centred on entirely unsubstantiated allegations that pupils at Sea View Community Primary School had been forced to pray on Muslim mats and recite Islamic prayers. The school has said the accusations are ‘untrue’.
Reform councillor and Tommy Robinson allies back ‘completely untrue’ RE claims, humanists.uk
Reform UK likely to raise council tax in Kent despite promise to cut costs
Kent becomes latest local authority controlled by Nigel Farage’s party to signal intention to raise council tax
A Reform UK-run council where the party sought to pilot drastic cost-cutting plans is going to have to raise council tax, a cabinet member has admitted.
Services at Kent county council were already “down to the bare bones”, said Reform’s cabinet member for adult social care, Diane Morton. It makes Kent the latest local authority controlled by Nigel Farage’s party to signal its intention to raise council tax.
Reform UK likely to raise council tax in Kent despite promise to cut costs, The Guardian
Reform UK councillor denies election crime
Andy Osborn, 74, who is a member of Cambridgeshire County Council, appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday charged with making or publishing a false statement before or during an election in relation to the candidate’s personal character or conduct, under the Representation of the People Act 1983.
Reform UK councillor denies election crime, BBC
- Note: Andy Osborn recently made headlines for another reason
Councillor to be investigated over ‘evil’ remark
A councillor who was heard to describe some children in care as “downright evil” is being investigated for an alleged breach of the members’ code of conduct.
Cambridgeshire County Council has confirmed an investigation into the allegation against Reform UK member Andy Osborn is taking place after a complaint was lodged.
Councillor to be investigated over ‘evil’ remark, BBC
Countdown: The steady shedding of Reform councillors and officials continues…
Drunken displays, racist rants and dodgy deals are just some of the reasons that Reform councillors and officials are dropping like flies…
While Reform UK can celebrate a steady drumbeat of defections and by-elections boosting their number of councillors, they’re finding it somewhat hard to keep hold of the ones they’ve already got. The party managed to shed a remarkable eight councillors in September alone, and have lost 24 since May, for a variety of embarrassing reasons.
To make matters worse, even Reform HQ staff are not safe from the perpetual churn. Read on for a breakdown of those suspended, expelled and otherwise exiled from the Reform Party movement over the past few months…
Countdown: The steady shedding of Reform councillors and officials continues…, Hope not Hate
Reform-run Kent council plans £2m school budget raid
Leaders say proposals fly in face of pre-election pledges to identify efficiencies and savings from Musk-style DOGE unit
Reform UK-run Kent council plans to raid £2 million from schools’ already-squeezed budgets to pay for vital services it can no longer afford, sparking fears of more classroom cuts.
Leaders say the proposals fly in the face of Reform’s pre-election pledges to identify efficiencies and savings through a pilot of its own Elon Musk-style DOGE unit.
The party also admitted this week it’s likely to hike council tax charges for its residents.
Reform-run Kent council plans £2m school budget raid, Schools Week
Reform leader admitted taking bribes
Nathan Gill, who led Reform UK in Wales in 2021, admitted taking bribes to make statements in favour of Vladimir Putin’s Russia while he was a Member of the European Parliament.
Nigel Farage says Nathan Gill was ‘bad apple’ over Russian bribes, The National
Councillor quits Reform UK over divergent views
Reform UK’s deputy group leader on Cornwall Council has resigned from the party citing a difference in views.
Rowland O’Connor was one of 28 Reform councillors who won a seat during the local elections in May.
The councillor for St Columb Major, St Mawgan and St Wenn said it had become clear his priorities had “increasingly diverged” from the party’s and he had decided to sit as an independent.
Councillor quits Reform UK over divergent views, BBC
Reform UK removes posts after Labour legal threat
Reform UK has deleted social media posts after receiving a legal letter from the Labour Party.
Addressed to Llŷr Powell, Reform UK’s by-election candidate, the letter accused Reform of using copyrighted images in its material for the Caerphilly by-election.
On 7 October, Labour gave the party 24 hours to remove an image featuring the first minister and candidate Richard Tunnicliffe, warning that failure to do so could lead to legal proceedings.
Reform UK removes posts after Labour legal threat, BBC
Reform UK’s ex-leader in Wales Nathan Gill pleads guilty to bribery charges
Gill admits to eight counts of bribery relating to statements in favour of Russia in the European parliament
The former leader of Reform UK in Wales has pleaded guilty to bribery charges relating to statements in favour of Russia in the European parliament.
Nathan Gill, of Anglesey, north Wales, admitted eight counts of bribery on dates between 6 December 2018 and 18 July 2019.
Reform UK’s ex-leader in Wales Nathan Gill pleads guilty to bribery charges, The Guardian
Reform UK county councillor defects to UKIP
A Reform UK county councillor in Kent has defected to UKIP, it has been announced.
Amelia Randall, who serves the Birchington & Rural division in Thanet, has left the party four months after being elected.
A Reform UK spokesperson said: “We remain committed to our mission of delivering for our residents and ensuring Nigel Farage becomes Britain’s next Prime Minister.”
Opposition leader at Kent County Council, Antony Hook, has called for Randall to resign and a by-election to be called.
He said: “She should resign so that Birchington residents can make a fresh choice about who they want to represent them.”
Reform UK county councillor defects to UKIP, BBC
