Latest news with #RogerGough
ITV News
06-05-2025
- Politics
- ITV News
When does Reform UK take charge of Kent and who will be their leader?
The scale of Reform UK's landslide victory at the Kent County Council (KCC) elections appears to have taken even the party's own supporters by surprise. Nigel Farage described their success in winning control of 10 local authorities as 'the most seismic moment that English politics had ever seen' and claimed that Reform had 'replaced the Conservative party'. Reform UK won 57 of the 81 seats up for election on KCC, registering a 37% share of the popular vote and overturning a sizable Conservative majority. It brings to an end almost three decades of Tory control of Kent County Hall. The party had been in charge since 1997, and prior to 1993 had run England's largest county council uninterrupted since 1974. Cllr David Wimble suggests Reform UK 'takes time to get it right' when picking a council leader When will Reform UK begin running Kent County Council? Although the 81 newly elected county councillors begin their term of office immediately following the declaration of the election results, Reform UK has not yet formally started running KCC. The new Reform UK administration will take charge at the council's annual meeting on Thursday, 22 May. Until this time, the council does not have a leader or cabinet, with any urgent decisions taken by the non-political chief executive. Former Kent County Council leader, Roger Gough, lost his seat to Reform UK Who will lead Kent County Council? It is up to the party with a majority of county councillors – now Reform UK – to choose a new council leader. The previous leader, Roger Gough, lost his seat at the election and described the scale of the Tory defeat as 'beyond his worst expectations'. Mr Gough told ITV News Meridian: 'I'm not in the business of pointing the finger of blame at anyone [for the results]. 'I think what has happened reflects really how the Conservative Party lost its standing with a huge part of the electorate, particularly between 2021 and 2022. 'Many of the things that went wrong in government at that time are things for which we are all still paying the price.' Cllr David Wimble, who was elected with 64% of the vote in the Romney Marsh division, has expressed an interest in jointly leading KCC with Cllr Maxine Fothergill. Cllr Wimble told ITV Meridian: 'The win was huge. We were very surprised by the amount of votes we got. 'Realistically we thought we might get between 35 and 45 councillors, we always hoped to get control of the council but 57 [seats] is pretty amazing. 'I'm not saying I'm necessarily the right person [for the leadership] but I've got at least 18 years experience and I propose to do something a bit different to the others and that's to do a coalition leadership with another member.' It is understood that a meeting of Reform UK councillors in Kent will take place on Thursday, 8 May, to select a leader. The majority of the new Reform UK councillors in Kent have no prior local government experience, party sources confirmed. What policies might Reform UK adopt in Kent? During the local election campaign, Nigel Farage promised to bring in a cost-cutting department if Reform UK won control of KCC. He said the party would introduce a DOGE in the county, a reference to Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk. Cllr David Wimble said: 'If there are savings to be made, we must save them'. What about the other parties in Kent? The Liberal Democrats have become the second largest party on Kent County Council, with 12 councillors elected on 1 May. This means they will become the official opposition, ahead of the Conservatives, Greens and Labour. It is down to individual parties to appoint group leaders. From Westminster to Washington DC - our political experts are across all the latest key talking points. Listen to the latest episode below...
BBC News
03-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Reform hails 'new dawn' at Kent County Council
It is the morning after the night before, and Nigel Farage has promised a "new dawn" in British helicoptered in to Hop Farm, in Paddock Wood, on Friday evening for a party and fireworks after Reform took control of Kent County shortly after he arrived at the celebration event, he described the past 24 hours as "the most significant day of my career".The jubilant Reform leader also had a warning for both Labour and the Conservatives, saying: "Come the next election, I am telling you, Kent is at the top of our list." A statement perhaps that yesterday's local council election result was just the start of the Reform UK leader's plans to keep Kent turquoise. The Conservatives, who were elected in 2021 to run the county council with 61 councillors, now face a reality of just five, not enough to even be the that job will go to the Liberal Democrats, who now have 12 councillors - up six on their previous was a tough day too for independents on Friday, with none being elected across the county. So what happens next?Speaking as he packed up his leader's office, Roger Gough, who lost his seat in Sevenoaks to Reform, said: "It's a sad day and I'm going to miss this job."He then urged whoever comes next to "take it seriously". The person to inhabit that office will be decided next week, Reform's new councillors have we will see how Reform adjusts to the realities of power and, to put it bluntly, if they are any good at will have a big list of issues to contend with, not least local government reorganisation, which could see the very council they have just taken control of abolished in three years' time.
ITV News
02-05-2025
- Politics
- ITV News
Reform and the Lib Dems make inroads in traditional Conservative heartlands in the South of England
The Conservatives have faced twin threats in their traditional heartlands in the South, shedding seats on councils to both Reform UK and the Liberal Democrats. Kent County Council, which has been run by the Conservatives since 1997, has been won by Reform UK. Nigel Farage has described the Conservative losses as an "apocalypse", with the former Tory leader of Kent County Council, Roger Gough, losing his seat to a Reform candidate. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch's warning that these local elections would be 'difficult' for the party has materialised as Conservative councillors have lost their seats throughout the day. In the South of England, counting has been taking place for elections held on 1 May to county councils in Kent and Oxfordshire. Full elections are also taking place to the unitary authorities of Wiltshire and Buckinghamshire. The Liberal Democrats have also benefited from a collapse of the Tory vote in parts of Kent, winning the coastal division of Cheriton Sandgate & Hythe East. Nigel Farage, who is from Kent, said Reform UK was 'now the main opposition party' across the country. This was the first major electoral test for the political parties since last year's general election, with both Labour and the Conservatives bracing themselves for a tough set of results. The scale of Tory losses in the 'Garden of England' will be particularly alarming, as party activists prepare to defend their control of other councils in the region next year. Full elections were cancelled for county councils in Essex, East Sussex, West Sussex and Hampshire. Elections were also postponed to Isle of Wight and Thurrock councils. These postponed polls were to allow for council reorganisation in the region, and the introduction of elected mayors.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
'Apocalyptic' situation for Tories
The Conservative leader of Kent County Council has described his party's situation at the local elections as "apocalyptic". Roger Gough lost his own seat at Sevenoaks and Darent Valley North, according to a Local Democracy Reporting Service reporter. It comes as the results have started to be declared in Kent with the Conservatives losing 15 of the first 20 seats, 12 of which were won by Reform UK. All 72 electoral divisions across the county are up for election - equating to 81 councillors in total. Gough described his party's situation as "apocalyptic" and added: "That's the only way I can describe it." The Conservatives had overall control of the authority with 56 of the 81 councillors before the vote. At 14:00 BST with 20 seats declared, 12 of them went to Reform UK, five to the Liberal Democrats, two to Labour and one to the Greens. The Conservatives have not yet won a seat. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage told BBC Radio Kent: "It's looking a very good day for us in Kent, I'm being told it could even be a majority win for us. That will help the celebrations tonight." Counting started on Friday morning and results were expected by 19:00 BST. Charlotte Wright, BBC South East political editor, said: "This is looking grim for the Conservative Party. "After years of comfortably being the dominant force on Kent County Council, they are yet to secure a single seat. "It looks like the party has been no match for the widespread fractured political mood, with Reform UK taking seats off them right across the county." Who has been in charge? Before the 2025 vote, the council was made up of 55 Conservatives, six Liberal Democrats, five Labour councillors (including Labour and Co-operative), five Green Party members, four Independent councillors, three Reform UK members, one Heritage Party councillor, one Swale Independents councillor, and there was one vacancy. Kent County Council has been Conservative-run for most of its existence. Since it was created in its current format in 1974, it has had a Conservative leader for all but four years, as between 1993 and 1997 the authority was led by joint leaders from Labour and the Liberal Democrats. In 1997, the Conservatives won their majority back, which they have held onto since, although their authority was shaken in the 2013 election when Ukip became the second largest party on the council, before losing all their seats four years later. When will we know all the results? How the BBC is reporting local election results Anger and indifference collide in unpredictable local elections What happened at the last election? In the last county council election in 2021, the Conservatives won 49% of the vote, securing 61 seats. In terms of seats won, the Lib Dems came second with six, Labour got five and the Green Party secured four. Reform UK did not win any seats. Follow BBC Kent on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@ or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250. Local election count begins in Kent Kent County Council election: what you need to know Kent County Council
BBC News
02-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
'Apocalyptic' situation for Tories
The Conservative leader of Kent County Council has described his party's situation at the local elections as "apocalyptic". Roger Gough said he was not sure he would hang on to his own seat at Sevenoaks and Darent Valley comes as the results have started to be declared in Kent with Reform UK taking the first two seats from the Conservatives. All 72 electoral divisions across the county are up for election - equating to 81 councillors in total. Gough described his party's situation as "apocalyptic" and added: "That's the only way I can describe it."The Conservatives had overall control of the authority with 56 of the 81 councillors before the 13:00 BST Reform UK had won seats at Maidstone South East and Gravesham Rural. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage told BBC Radio Kent: "It's looking a very good day for us in Kent, I'm being told it could even be a majority win for us. That will help the celebrations tonight."Counting started on Friday morning and results were expected by 19:00 BST. Who has been in charge?Before the 2025 vote, the council was made up of 55 Conservatives, six Liberal Democrats, five Labour councillors (including Labour and Co-operative), five Green Party members, four Independent councillors, three Reform UK members, one Heritage Party councillor, one Swale Independents councillor, and there was one County Council has been Conservative-run for most of its it was created in its current format in 1974, it has had a Conservative leader for all but four years, as between 1993 and 1997 the authority was led by joint leaders from Labour and the Liberal 1997, the Conservatives won their majority back, which they have held onto since, although their authority was shaken in the 2013 election when Ukip became the second largest party on the council, before losing all their seats four years later. When will we know all the results?How the BBC is reporting local election resultsAnger and indifference collide in unpredictable local elections What happened at the last election?In the last county council election in 2021, the Conservatives won 49% of the vote, securing 61 terms of seats won, the Lib Dems came second with six, Labour got five and the Green Party secured UK did not win any seats.
