Eighteen councils in England have requested to delay their upcoming local elections in what Reform UK has described as an “attack on Democracy”.
Deputy PM Angela Rayner is expected to announce on Tuesday which of the 18 two-tier councils in England who have applied to become unitary authorities under Labour’s devolution plans will be granted their wishes.
The councils claim that the delay will buy them time to develop proposals on reorganisation.
Reform UK has blasted the move, accusing Labour of cooking up the plan with the Conservatives to thwart the insurgent party’s rise as it leads the race in opinion polls for the first time.
“Labour has colluded with the Conservatives to cancel large swathes of the English County Council elections on May 1st,” a post on the party’s website reads, adding: “The elections are being cancelled in areas where Reform’s support is strongest. This is an attack on our democracy and we need to save it.”
Indeed, many of the councils are located in counties that were projected to turn turquoise at local and national elections, such as Essex, which is home to two out of five of Reform’s elected MPs.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said on January 15 it received requests from 16 counties and two unitary authorities to postpone their election from 2025 to 2026.
Many councils are located in areas where Reform’s support is surging
MapChart
Here’s the full list of councils:
Devon
East Sussex
West Sussex
Essex
Gloucestershire
Hampshire
Isle of Wight
Kent
Leicestershire
Lincolnshire
Norfolk
Oxfordshire
Suffolk
Surrey
Thurrock
Warwickshire
Worcestershire.
Branding the delay as a “disgrace” to democracy, Reform has launched a petition on its website that has garnered 207,866 signatures at the time of writing.
Does the party have a point? Let’s take a look at the timeline of events.
On December 16, 2024, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner announced a significant initiative to implement directly elected mayors across all regions of England.
This plan aims to decentralize authority from Whitehall, granting regional leaders enhanced powers over sectors such as transport, housing, and planning.
The proposal includes restructuring local governance by consolidating smaller district councils into larger unitary authorities, each serving populations of approximately 1.5 million residents.
Labour insists that the restructuring isn’t politically motivated, rather, it’s designed to enhance devolution and streamline administrative structures.
Farage and his colleagues vehemently disagree, arguing that it’s a deliberate attempt to thwart Reform’s rise as it rides high in the opinion polls ahead of the next General Election.
Labour insists that the restructuring isn’t politically motivated, rather, it’s designed to enhance devolution and streamline administrative structures
Getty Images/MapChart
Addressing his 2.1 million followers on X in December, the Reform leader wrote: “Cancelling elections in areas where Reform are gaining momentum is the act of a desperate government.
“They have the audacity to call us a ‘threat to democracy’ while acting like third-world dictators.”
Commenting on the post, X owner Elon Musk, said: “Indeed.”
Reform MP Lee Anderson weighed in, adding: “When they can’t beat you at the ballot box they take the ballot box away.
“This is not some South American military regime.”
In response to a request for comment, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government told GB News: “We have announced an ambitious programme of local government reorganisation which will take power from Westminster to the people who know their communities best as part of our plans to unlock devolution across the whole of England.
“Putting power in the right places so that local leaders are fully equipped to drive growth will put more money into people’s pockets. Many councils have also said that these reforms will also help strengthen local leadership, boost local accountability and save taxpayers’ money which can be reinvested into vital public services.”
