Reform UK and Tories win Higham Ferrers council by-election
Reform UK and the Conservative Party have picked up more seats on North Northamptonshire Council after a by-election.It was called in the Higham Ferrers ward after Liberal Democrat candidate John Ratcliffe died prior to last month's elections, which saw Reform UK take overall control of the authority.Voters went to the polls for the rearranged election on Thursday, and the results saw Reform UK's Mark Haddon newly elected, while Conservative councillor Jennie Bone retained her seat.The turnout was 31.1%, just below the 31.6% average for the wider North Northamptonshire Council vote.
Haddon earned the most votes in the ward with 656, and the 76-year-old told the Local Democracy Reporting Service he was "apprehensive, excited and a little bit shell-shocked" after his win.Haddon, who went to school and was married in Higham Ferrers, said it would be his first venture into politics."I considered initially that I'm too old to start a new career, shall we say," he said"It was something I didn't really think I was going to do, but I'd like to think that we can get council finances under control."A lot of what I got on the doorstep was 'We will vote for you so long as you're not Labour or Conservative.'"
Bone was elected with 559 votes, just three more than the next Reform UK candidate - Elisa Perna - in third.The results will not materially change the make-up of North Northamptonshire Council, with Reform UK sitting on a comfortable majority from the earlier elections.There are now 40 Reform UK, 14 Conservatives, eight Greens, four Labour and one Liberal Democrat and Independent councillor on the authority.The Tories had formerly led both North and West Northamptonshire Councils since their inception in 2021.
Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Times
33 minutes ago
- Times
No concessions on benefits reform, Starmer tells rebels
Sir Keir Starmer has warned Labour rebels there will be no concessions on cuts to disability benefits as he vows to press ahead with reforming a welfare system he says is 'not working for taxpayers'. The prime minister said he has 'got to get the reforms through' as ministers prepare to publish legislation this week that is likely to prompt Starmer's biggest backbench rebellion yet. While ministers insist they are confident of avoiding defeat, there is nervousness in government after 170 Labour MPs raised concerns about reforms which will make it harder to claim personal independent payments (PIP), the main disability benefit. But Starmer insisted that even critics agreed that 'we've got to reform the welfare system', saying: 'The principles remain the same: those who can work should work; those who need support into work should have that support into work, which I don't think they are getting at the moment; those who are never going to be able to work should be properly supported and protected, and that includes not being reassessed and reassessed.' Speaking on his way to the G7 summit in Canada, Starmer said: 'We need reform and we will be getting on with that reform when the bill comes.' About 800,000 people will lose thousands of pounds a year under the reforms and MPs are alarmed by official estimates that a quarter of a million people will be pushed into poverty as a result. • Thanks to the PIP benefit I could work. So why remove it? Last week ministers offered rebels a £500 million 'olive branch', promising that those who lost PIP would have 13 weeks before their payments stopped, and that the same three-month transition period would also apply to 150,000 people who stand to lose a carer's allowance linked to a cancelled PIP claim. Ministers say this is longer than any other transition payment and will mean that no one loses out before 2027. They say there can be no change to the main thrust of the reforms, which will make it harder to qualify for help with everyday tasks such as washing and dressing. They are alarmed by the soaring cost of sickness benefits, which have risen by £20 billion since the pandemic and which will rise by another £18 billion by the end of the parliament. This is despite reforms that will save £5 billion. Asked if there would be any softening of the bill before a vote expected at the end of the month, Starmer said: 'We've got to get the reforms through. I've been clear about that from start to finish — the system is not working. It's not working for those that need support. It's not working for taxpayers. Everybody agrees it needs reform. We've got to reform it and that's what we intend to do with the bill.' • A quarter of Britons now disabled Leading rebels have dismissed last week's attempts at reassurance, saying they want a fuller impact assessment and an immediate review of PIP criteria. A wider review promised by ministers is not expected to be completed until after tougher rules come into effect in November 2026. Neil Duncan-Jordan, a leading backbench critic of the bill, agreed with ministers last week that the extra transition periods were 'not a concession', and confirmed he would vote against it. He said MPs should recognise the cuts 'will make disabled people poorer. No amount of warm words mask the reality — cuts don't create jobs, they create austerity'. Brian Leishman, another backbench leftwinger, attacked the reforms as 'a complete insult to disabled people and against everything a Labour government should ever do to people that need help'. Ministers believe that less hardline critics will be persuaded to fall into line by evidence that the government is listening to concerns. A suggestion by Kemi Badenoch, the Tory leader, that her party would vote against the bill is also seen as helpful by party managers who say Labour MPs will not want to walk through lobbies alongside Conservative MPs. An extension of free school meals to all pupils on universal credit has also helped as ministers have pointed out that this will lift 100,000 children out of poverty, twice the number pushed into poverty by welfare cuts.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Keir Starmer: I'll face down rebels on benefit cuts
Sir Keir Starmer has faced down Labour rebels on his welfare cuts package, insisting the reforms must be pushed through. The Prime Minister said the welfare system was not 'working for taxpayers' and gave no indication he was prepared to offer new concessions to angry backbenchers. A package of £5 billion in annual savings from the disability and sickness benefits bill was unveiled earlier this year, including cuts to the personal independence payment (PIP). Legislation unveiling the specifics of the changes is expected to be published this week before a crunch vote at some point before Parliament breaks for summer recess next month. More than 150 Labour MPs have signed a private letter indicating opposition to the welfare cuts, in what has become the biggest rebellion of Sir Keir's premiership to date. Downing Street advisers have identified the vote on the measures as the most politically challenging issue facing the Government in the coming weeks. The Prime Minister was asked, during a trip to Canada for the G7 summit, whether he was confident the disability benefit cuts would pass Parliament. Sir Keir replied: 'We've got to reform the welfare system. Everybody agrees with that proposition. So we've got to do that basic reform. It doesn't work for those that need support and help into work and it doesn't work for the taxpayer. 'So it's got to be reformed. The principles remain the same, those who can work should work. Those who need support in to work should have that support in to work which I don't think they are getting at the moment. 'Those who are never going to be able to work should be properly supported and protected. And that includes not being reassessed and reassessed. So they are the principles, we need to do reform and we will be getting on with that reform when the Bill comes.' The Prime Minister also offered up little chance on late changes to the package when asked if more concessions were to be expected. Sir Keir said: 'Well we have got to get the reforms through and I have been clear about that from start to finish. The system is not working, it's not working for those that need support, it's not working for taxpayers. Everybody agrees it needs reform, we have got to reform it and that is what we intend to do.' The Treasury will be loath to lose the £5 billion savings from the package, which were announced to help Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, restore her fiscal headroom in the spring statement in March. Critics on the Right insisted the reforms did not go far enough, given the sickness benefit bill is expected to continue ballooning by billions of pounds in the years ahead. But the reforms have ignited a fierce backlash from on the Left, with Labour backbenchers putting their names to a private letter to the Chief Whip voicing private opposition. The letter reportedly has signatures of more than 150 Labour MPs. Whether all of those potential rebels end up voting against the measures remains to be seen. The ability of Number 10 and Number 11 to hold the line has been challenged by the decision to reverse winter fuel payment cuts, an about-turn which cost £1.25 billion.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Staff at financial regulator revolt over female-only lavatories
Staff at the financial regulator have revolted over a decision to make lavatories single-sex in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling on gender. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is changing several office spaces after judges ruled in April that the terms 'woman' and 'sex' in the 2010 Equality Act 'refer to a biological woman and biological sex'. The ruling prompted new guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission. Under new internal FCA guidance, lavatories and showers should only be used by colleagues of that 'biological sex'. However, transgender men and women will still be able to use 'accessible toilets' under the changes. Disgruntled staff have now chosen not to represent the FCA at Pride events and attend individually instead. An FCA source said some employees feel 'uncomfortable' about the decision. They concluded: 'We will be attending as individuals, united in our support of the transgender community.' 'Sideline and ignore them' Helen Joyce, director of advocacy at human rights organisation Sex Matters, said: 'No doubt some activists, both inside and outside the FCA, will now noisily oppose the new policy. 'Senior managers should sideline and ignore them, just as they would with any other group advocating for breaking the law.' A FCA spokesman said it understood colleagues had been 'impacted' by the 'sensitive issue'. He added: 'In light of the Supreme Court ruling, the EHRC interim update and existing facilities in all offices, we concluded we needed to change our approach. 'We did this promptly to give clarity to colleagues on which facilities to use, which in itself offers individuals confidence, privacy and dignity when using our facilities.' Ther spokesman said that the FCA 'respects the decision some colleagues have taken not to represent the FCA at Pride'.
