RUK councils are struggling with inexperienced and unprepared new councillors. RUK councillors have poor attendance to meetings, with the party cancelling 40% of its scheduled meetings in the first 6 months. RUK councillors are largely inexperienced amateurs, learning on the job about adult social care, education, and other council duties, exposing a wider pattern of chaos and mismanagement where the party holds local power.
A Northumberland county councillor, Nicole Brooke, has warned that Reform UK is “not ready” to govern nationally after she and fellow councillor Patrick Lambert were expelled for allegedly “misusing” colleagues’ signatures in an attempt to trigger a vote of no confidence. She said: “This is a s***show. We were promised it was going to be professionalised, but we have had no training, nothing from head office – we have just been left.” https://national.thelead.uk/p/reform-watch-crypto-donations-council
Reform attracts opportunists, conspiracy theorists, and inexperienced newcomers. Many councillors and mayors are unprepared for the responsibilities or disagree with party policy. The example of Hull and East Yorkshire mayor Luke Campbell—ill-prepared and repeatedly absent—shows how governance has stalled due to lack of capability.
Then there is Nottinghamshire’s Reform UK cabinet member for economic development, James Walker Gurley, who was completely unprepared and clueless in an interview. Despite overseeing county economic policies, he struggled to answer basic questions, relied on scripted responses, and showed no understanding of his projects. This reflects Reform UK’s broader pattern of putting inexperienced, overconfident individuals in important roles.
Poor attendance
Evidence is growing that many newly elected Reform councillors are failing to perform even the basics of their roles — including attending meetings. Several councillors have resigned or been criticised for chronic absence, such as David Maclean on the Isle of Wight and Christine Parsonage in Cornwall, who hasn’t attended a single meeting since May 2025. Attendance records across councils show repeated no-shows from Reform members, including senior figures missing key committees on youth crime, housing, pensions, and healthcare. Some have skipped more meetings than they’ve attended, yet still receive taxpayer-funded allowances. Despite Reform’s claims of professionalism and efficiency, their councillors’ widespread absenteeism suggests the opposite.
Reform councillors are often criticised for poor attendance, but Alexander Jones stands out for a different reason. He posted a topless Instagram photo from a yacht in Tenerife promoting his investment-trading group and celebrating the “freedom” it gave him. Yet less than a day later, Jones appeared back in Doncaster to vice-chair a planning committee meeting dealing with routine issues like driveway extensions and boundary fences. His rapid shift from luxury yacht posts to local bureaucracy has raised questions about how committed — or candid — Reform councillors are about their responsibilities.
Cancelling meetings
Reform UK’s performance in local government is already marked by disorganisation and dysfunction. After winning nine councils in May — including 57 of 81 seats in Kent — the party has cancelled 40% of its scheduled meetings, a pattern mirrored across the country. Their chaotic start has been worse than even critics anticipated.
At the local level, Reform-controlled councils are already struggling. Across 12 councils, 33 meetings have been cancelled or postponed within nine weeks. Opposition members say Reform councillors lack basic procedural knowledge and are making chaotic decisions. One example is Darren Grimes pushing to scrap equality, diversity, and inclusion programmes—which represent just 0.03% of council spending—as if it were a major cost-saving priority.
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