The Cost of Risky Recruitment: How Reform UK’s New Councillors Are Triggering By-Elections and Taxpayer Bills

In the wake of the May 2025 local elections, Reform UK secured a large number of council seats and heralded a major breakthrough. However, a number of those new councillors have since resigned, been sacked or suspended, defected, or are facing disciplinary/criminal investigations — triggering by-elections, revealing internal turmoil, and raising questions about the party’s candidate-vetting at a cost of thousands of pounds for local taxpayers. Is that what Reform voters really want their tax money spent on?

Below is a detailed summary of reported cases and consequences.

Resignations

May 2025 – John Bailey (Durham County Council, Easington and Shotton ward): Resigned due to ill health.
May 2025 – Andrew Kilburn (Benfieldside Division, Durham CC) had to quit the council altogether due to his employment with said council, which is prohibited. Again, basic vetting would have unearthed this fact.
May 2025 – Wayne Titley (Eccleshall & Gnosall division, Staffs CC) was expelled after the Reform Party Exposed account unearthed Facebook posts calling for a “volley of gun fire” to sink small boats in the Channel.
May 2025 – Nottinghamshire’s Desmond Clarke (Newark West division, Notts CC) who discovered that he didn’t want to be a councillor after all, having apparently realised that he was ‘not in a position to represent the people of Newark West in the way they deserve’.
May 2025 – RAF employee & Reform UK candidate Luke Shingler (Galley Common, Warwickshire CC), who announced just prior to the election that he would have to sit as an Independent instead because military rules prohibit him from joining any political organisations” – something vetting should have flagged up.
May 2025 – Robert Bloom: resigned from North Northamtonshire council.
May 2025 – Gaynor Jean-Louise: resigned from Worcestershire council.
June 2025 – Barry O’Brien: quit after just one month to focus on personal commitments.
June 2025 – Sam Booth: Resigned as councillor (details not publicly clarified).
June 2025 – Rob Howard – Warwickshire CC (Council Leader) – resigned as leader after 41 days (remains councillor)
July 2025 – Bill Barrett – Kent CC (Cabinet Member for Highways & Transport) – removed/stepped down from cabinet.
July 2025 – Charlotte Gates – Derbyshire CC (Support Cabinet Member) – removed/replaced in cabinet.
August 2025 – David Maclean – Isle of Wight Council (Lake North) – resigned from council.
August 2025 – David Taylor – Worcestershire CC (Deputy Leader) – resigned deputy leader post (remains in cabinet).
September 2025 – Doncaster Council: David Knight removed from Reform sits as independent and Rachel Reed quit Scrutiny Chair but stays as deputy leader. Set up firm together looking to obtain airport contracts. Removed September 2025.
September 2025 – Mark Peart: Northumberland CC: Reform, the second biggest party called a no confidence vote, in their leader Mark Peart, and he lost.
September 2025 – Terry White – After Reform UK SUSPENDED its Warrington branch, local member Terry White quit the party: and he hasn’t held back. He says Reform UK:

– Welcomed two former BNP MEMBERS to meetings
– Had no local policies whatsoever
– Silenced members who spoke up
– Tried to parachute in an MP candidate

White says they claim to stand for “democracy, free speech and strong local communities”, but in reality, don’t believe in any of those things.
September 2025 – Angela Nash – Devon County Council: resigned from Reform September 2025. Defected to UKIP. She says Reform say they stand for fairness and accountability but experience has shown otherwise.
September 2025 – Amelia Randell – Kent County Council. Defected to UKIP. It could be something to do with her psychic abilities.
October 2025 – Rowland O’Connor – Cornwall Council : resigned Reform and now sits as an Independent.
October 2025 – Christopher Marriott – Doncaster City Council: resigned from Reform for personal reasons now and sits as an independent.
October 2025 – Helen Butler – Leicester CC: left role as Reform cabinet member for family reasons.
October 2025 – Mark Whittington – South Kesteven DC Grantham. Quit the Conservatives on 7/10 to join Reform. Stepped down from Reform on 27/10 and now stands as an independent. Plenty more parties for him to try.
October 2025 – Karen Knight, Rowland O’Connor, Christine Parsonage, Rob Parsonage and Anna Thomason Kenyon. All resigned from Cornwall CC and Christine Parsonage has now resigned as a councillor citing friction faced trying to balance national party’s priorities with interests of Cornish residents. The remaining four now form the Cornish Independent Nonaligned Group.
October 2025 – James Buchan – Dartford BC. Resigned and defected to Conservatives explaining that Reform are creating huge amounts of fear and anxiety and that he wants to be able to look his family in the eye.
November 2025 – Terry White – Warrington BC. Quit the party claiming Reform do not believe in free speech.

Sacked / Suspended / Other Disciplinary Actions

May 2025 – Donna Edmunds (Shropshire, Hodnet ward): Suspended and quit the party days after being elected, following a social media post pledging to defect to another party and criticising Nigel Farage.
May 2025 – Mark Broadhurst (Hatfield ward, Doncaster City Council) was expelled from the Reform UK group following HOPE not hate’s pre-election expose of his social media activity, which included a meme suggesting that Hitler would have been “a legend” if he’d chosen to exterminate Muslims instead of Jews.
May 2025 – Adam Smith (West Northamptonshire Council, Hackleton & Roade): suspended 34 days after the election, with Reform citing a number of concerns. Now officially expelled September 2025.
May 2025 – Paul Harrison (Leicestershire), Russell Cherry (Thurrock), Ivan Dabbs (West Northamptonshire): Among up to 12 councillors under investigation for sharing far-right and Islamophobic content on social media. Three of the investigated councillors have since left the party.
- Ivan Dabbs: Specifically criticised for sharing content from the fascist group Britain First; no disciplinary action taken to date.
A new Reform UK councillor in Leicestershire was revealed – after his election – to have been sacked as a police officer, while a (subsequently unsuccessful) Reform candidate in Somerset had also been previously sacked from the police force. That fact only emerged after it was too late to drop out.
June 2025 – Daniel Taylor – Kent County Council: suspended from Reform after being arrested for threatening to kill wife.
July 2025 – Amanda Clare – Cheshire West and Chester Council: suspended from job working for Sarah Pochin when assaulted a security guard at a Pride event.
July 2025 – Charlotte Gates – Derbyshire County Council: support Cabinet member, removed/replaced in Cabinet.
August 2025 – Joseph Boam – Leicestershire CC (Deputy Leader & Cabinet lead for Adults & Communities) – sacked from both roles. Unsurprisingly, at 22, he was completely unqualified for the role.
August 2025 – Paul Bean – Durham CC Councillor – suspended from his job processing asylum and immigration claims at the Home Office. Also suspended by Reform but that may be because he criticised Reform and Nigel Farage.
August 2025 – James Regan – Ongar Town CC – suspended for racist posts on SM. Also protested outside Bell hotel in Epping.
September 2025 – John Allen: suspended by Reform UK pending investigation (online comments calling for Starmer’s death September 2025).
September 2025 – Jack McGlenen: expelled from Reform UK for drunken/abusive behaviour.
September 2025 – Nicole Brooke and Patrick Lambert – Northumberland County Council -suspended from Reform. Whip removed pending investigation for breaching Reform council group rules.
September 2025 – Ed Hill – Devon CC: permanently expelled for fiddling his own expenses and blowing the whistle on a colleague’s election spending and for pushing a letter calling for free school meals (should have kept in house apparently).
October 2025 – Robert Ford – Kent County Council: suspended over unofficial complaint from several female members of staff. Now sits as an independent.
October 2025 – Andy Osbourne – Cambridgeshire CC: suspended from Reform charged with making or publishing a false statement before or during an election.
October 2025 – Brian Black, Oliver Bradshaw, Paul Thomas were expelled from Kent CC for showing patterns of dishonest and deceptive behaviour. Robert Ford and Bill Barrat were also ousted for criticising the party’s leaders. What!?
October 2025 – Maxine Fothergill – Kent CC – has had whip suspended pending investigation of leaked video of councillors in zoom call having a shouting match.
November 2025 – Charles Whitfield (Leicester County Council): has been stood down from his senior role as cabinet member for highways, transport and waste. He replied to a resident about a flags complaint and then began an Islamaphobic rant. He had previously threatened to resign Reform having found they were cramping his style and were too constraining.
November 2025 – Laura Anne Jones (Welsh Senedd): represented the Welsh Tories until July 2025 then defected to Reform. Suspended/banned from Senedd for 14 days after using racial slur. She is the only Reform representative.
November 2025 – Thomas Pickup (Lancashire County Council): suspended while being investigated for being part of WhatsApp group where participants call for mass Islam genocide and threaten the Prime Minister.
November 2025 – Isabella Kemp (Kent CC): part of the Videogate group. Expelled from the Reform Party following investigation into the leaking of confidential information.

Reform UK MPs and Councillors with Criminal Charges or Convictions

Of course we don’t want readers to believe that it’s only Reform UK councillors that are in disarray, how about the Reform UK MPs that have criminal charges or convictions?

1. James McMurdock (South Basildon & East Thurrock)

Conviction (2006): Pleaded guilty to assault by beating his girlfriend, repeatedly kicking her outside a nightclub in Chelmsford. He was detained in a young offenders’ institution for 21 days.
Disclosure: Did not reveal this conviction before being elected in 2024. Once it became public, he expressed remorse, calling it his “biggest regret,” though his account contradicted court records.
Current Status: Later left Reform UK and now sits as an independent MP.

2. Nathan Gill

Bribery Charges (2025): Former Wales leader of Reform UK, charged with eight counts of bribery and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery. The case relates to statements he made in the European Parliament and to media outlets concerning Ukraine. Gill denies wrongdoing.
Incarcerated: Sentenced on 20 November 2025 to 10 years.

3. Rupert Lowe

Investigation, No Charges: Former Reform UK MP investigated over allegations of making verbal threats. The case was dropped by the police and prosecutors due to insufficient evidence.
Status: Now sits as an independent MP.

4. Amanda ‘Mandy’ Clare

Charges: Charged with assault and criminal damage after an incident at a Pride event.
Status: Pleaded not guilty, awaiting trial.

5. Robert Bloomberg

Charges – two counts of racially or religiously aggravated harassment without violence.
Status – Out on bail, due at Northampton Magistrates’ Court on 13 November 2025.

6. Robert Barrowcliffe

Charges – Chair of Reform Party in Tameside charged with drink driving.
Status – has been banned from driving for one year (option to take a drink-drive rehabilitation course to reduce period) and also fined.

Other

Newquay Town Council: Christine Parsonage lives 45 miles from council area. Rarely at meetings.
Kent County Council: Dean Truder. According to Hope Not Hate does not appear to have attended any meetings but has pocketed the £2,623.69 allowances.
Staffordshire CC: Michael Carver rarely attends meetings.
Bridgend County Borough Council: Owen Clatworthy – 5 weeks after being elected, contacted Labour’s council leader wishing to switch. Then appeared with Farage on stage and denied the claim.
October 2025 – Richard Morgan and Charlotte Gates – Derbyshire CC: both councillors holding committee position have been dropped from the posts due to attendance issues. Records show Morgan attended one out of six meetings and Gates’ one out of four.

And what about the investigation into Nigel Farage by Parliament’s standards watchdog?

Reform UK leader and MP for Clacton, Nigel Farage, is currently the subject of a formal investigation by Parliament’s standards watchdog.

What the Investigation Covers

Breach of Rule 5 — Registration of Interests

The probe concerns a possible breach of Rule 5 of the MPs’ Code of Conduct, which mandates that MPs must declare any change to their financial or other interests within 28 days of the change.
The investigation follows a complaint from a member of the House of Lords.
Farage has publicly stated the probe is not related to any undeclared income.
There is speculation that the complaint may relate to his reference to owning a commercial fishing boat—a claim that may not appear in his Register of Members’ Financial Interests.