Three more Reform UK councillors expelled from party over ‘dishonest’ behaviour after leaked video meeting – UK politics live | Politics
Three more Reform UK councilors expelled from party for ‘dishonest’ behavior
Three more members of Reform’s “flagship” council have been expelled for “dishonest and deceptive conduct” following a leaked video meeting, PA Media reports. PA says:
Reform UK took control of Kent county council (KCC) after overthrowing a 30-year Conservative Party majority by winning 57 of 81 seats in local elections in May.
There are currently fewer than 50 Reform councilors in the KCC due to the number of suspensions and dismissals that have occurred since May.
Four councilors have been suspended after footage of an online meeting in which KCC leader Linden Kemkaran shouted and swore at members was revealed by the Guardian.
Three of these councillors: Bill Barrett, Oliver Bradshaw and Paul Thomas, as well as another councilor Brian Black, were expelled from Reform UK following investigations.
A. reform spokesman He said: “At the request of the leader of Kent County Council, Major Black and Major Thomas have been invited to meet with officials from Reform Headquarters to find a way forward for all involved.
“Following this meeting, it was decided to expel Major Black, Major Thomas and Major Bradshaw from the party for their lack of integrity.
“These individuals have demonstrated a pattern of dishonest and deceptive behavior towards the party’s elected officials that will not be tolerated.”
Last week, Barrett and another councillor, Robert Ford, were kicked out of Reform HQ in an email saying they had “undermined” the party’s interests and “bringing it into disrepute”.
important events
Fall in OBR productivity will create £20bn gap in budget more than expected, report says
We’re just over four weeks away from the budget and the papers are already full of speculation about what Rachel Reeves will do, but some stories are probably better sourced than others. When BBC And Financial Times Start leading with the same scoop, it would be wise to take it seriously.
So there is huge interest in the news that Reeves is facing a bigger-than-expected hit to the public finances (around £20bn) due to lower productivity in the UK economy.
Like Graeme Wearden reports,
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), the government’s official forecaster, is expected to cut its forecast for productivity growth by 0.3 per cent. Financial Times reported. He is expected to deliver his predictions to Rachel Reeves on Friday, and they will be published on budget day on November 26.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies think tank said every 0.1 percentage point fall in productivity would increase public sector net borrowing by £7 billion in 2029-30, so a 0.3 point fall could create a £21 billion hit.
Analysts expect a smaller fall in productivity, which would lead to a financial hit of between £7bn and £14bn, according to the IFS calculation.
There’s more on Graeme’s business live blog.
Minister defends plan to house refugees in military facilities even if costs are higher
Good morning. The Home Office confirmed last night that it wanted to use two barracks in Scotland and the south of England to house around 900 male asylum seekers. The two sites are Cameron Barracks in Inverness and Crowborough Training Camp in East Sussex, and ministers want men to start moving in from the end of next month. Kevin Rawlinson There are more details here.
In some ways this announcement could be added to the government’s list of U-turns; Just last summer the government said: He wanted to end the use of military areas for refugees.
this morning Luke PollardA defense minister was on air. He confirmed that Cameron Barracks and Crowborough Training Camp in Inverness had been set up as accommodation for asylum seekers and told the BBC it was about seeing whether that approach would work.
Some bases are small, some bases are larger in number, but I think the talk around the bases in the news today is to prove this concept, to see if it can work. We believe that these bases can provide adequate accommodation for refugees.
Yesterday the House of Commons home affairs committee warned it could be more expensive to house asylum seekers in barracks rather than hotels. Pollard suggested it would be worth it given the extent of public opposition to housing asylum seekers in hotels.
We are looking at what might be possible, and in some cases these bases may have a different cost to the hotels, but I think we need to reflect the public mood that these shelter hotels should be closed.
We are likely to get more information on this issue from Keir Starmer, who will visit and speak to the media this morning.
Here is the agenda of the day.
Morning: Chancellor Rachel Reeves is still in Saudi Arabia, speaking at an investment conference there.
Morning: Keir Starmer is visiting the northwest of England as part of the agreement he signed yesterday for the sale of Typhoon jets to Türkiye.
11am: Reform MP Danny Kruger held a press conference to announce plans to cut public service spending.
11.30: Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper answers questions in the House of Commons.
Afternoon: A lobby briefing is being held in Downing Street.
14.45: Starmer chair cabinet.
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