Reform UK, the hard-right party rebranded from the Brexit Party in 2021, has rapidly reshaped British politics. With polls suggesting it could win an outright majority in a future general election, the prospect of Nigel Farage entering Number 10 is no longer a fringe idea. The party now boasts four MPs, hundreds of councillors, and two mayors, positioning itself as the dominant force on the right. But what would a Reform-led national government truly look like? The answer may lie in its turbulent record in local government.
From Triumph to Turmoil: The Local Election Aftermath
Reform's performance in the May local elections was a seismic political event. The party won 677 council seats, securing control of 10 English councils. However, this triumph quickly unravelled into reports of chaos, infighting, and scandal. In Cornwall, where Reform emerged as the largest party with 28 seats, its local operation collapsed within six months amid resignations and internal disputes, allowing a Liberal Democrat and independent coalition to take charge.
The pattern repeated in Kent, which Nigel Farage had billed as Reform's "flagship council." There, the party has already lost nine of the 57 councillors elected in May. The instability was highlighted by a leaked recording of a fiery internal meeting where the council leader told dissenting colleagues they had to "fucking suck it up." This widespread disarray raises serious questions about the party's operational competence beyond campaigning.
Warwickshire: A Case Study in Governing Reality
To understand the on-the-ground reality, we turn to Warwickshire, where Reform is the largest party on the county council. Led by 19-year-old George Finch, who took charge after his predecessor resigned just five weeks post-election, the administration has faced significant challenges. Sam Jones, a Green councillor for Warwick and Leamington Spa, provides a critical perspective from the opposition benches.
"They've run into resistance in the form of the truth," Jones states. "They promised voters they would find and resolve inefficiencies, but they've hit the cruel reality that the council is actually underfunded. They're trying desperately to figure out how this actually works." Despite holding 23 seats, Reform falls short of the 29 needed for a majority in Warwickshire, where the Greens hold seven.
Jones, who has built a substantial social media following by challenging Reform's decisions, argues the party tapped into anger in a divided county. "A lot of them are good people, well-intentioned people who just want to throw sticks and stones at the status quo," he says of Reform voters. However, one of the party's first moves surprised many: restoring political adviser roles at a cost of £150,000 per year, a move seemingly at odds with promises to eliminate waste.
Symbolic Battles and Substantive Backlash
Where Reform has proposed cuts, fierce backlash has followed. Leader George Finch wrote to Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson seeking to revise rules on free school transport, sparking outrage over plans that critics said could force young children to walk long distances. Phillipson accused Reform of trying to send "children back to the Victorian era." Finch later denied planning to increase the statutory distance to five miles.
Jones took to TikTok to highlight the issue, garnering 340,000 views. "You don't get to be the party of protecting women and children and then say we want to make children ineligible for safe transport," he argues. Notably, Reform has since tempered its rhetoric on cuts, with Finch criticising council underfunding and the party's deputy leader admitting it cannot deliver £90bn in promised tax cuts.
Substantive policy has often been overshadowed by symbolic conflicts. A protracted row dubbed "flag gate" consumed council time after the chief executive blocked attempts to remove a Pride flag from Shire Hall. Reform eventually prevailed, restricting flag-flying to the Union Flag, St George's Cross, or the county flag. "Symbolically, that's an important thing," Jones concedes. "But is it substantial change? No."
A National Preview or a Local Learning Curve?
The past six months in local government reveal the difficulties Reform faces with what it calls bureaucracy, but Jones describes as the daily reality of governance. However, a national government wields far stronger levers than a local council. Jones draws a distinction between the party's leadership and its grassroots. "The top of Reform is a very well-oiled machine," he observes. "When you get to the lower levels, these are councillors who are Farage fans. They're not in the inner sanctum."
He warns against complacency, urging opposition parties not to simply wait for Reform to implode. "Right now, we're in a battle of ideas," Jones insists. "While we have time, we can fight forward with different ideas: better ideas that align with reality. The legacy parties aren't doing that. So, there is an alternative – a positive alternative. Hope is here. It's all of us."
As Reform UK continues its ascent in national polls, its turbulent apprenticeship in local government serves as a crucial, if chaotic, preview. The gap between sweeping campaign promises and the complex realities of administration has proven challenging. Whether this is merely teething trouble for a new political force or a fundamental flaw in its approach to governance may be one of the defining questions of British politics in the coming years.
