Durham council staff 'should join union' after Reform win

Mr Farage has warned council staff working on diversity or climate change initiatives to seek “alternative careers” after Reform UK took control of Durham council.

The Clacton MP’s party won a historic victory in Durham, taking control of the county council after winning 65 of the 98 seats available. Until 2021, the council had been controlled by Labour for a century.

Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said: “Unions are there to ensure no one can play fast and loose with the law.

“Any staff working for councils now controlled by Reform, and who aren’t yet members, should sign up so they can be protected too.”

(Image: Maja Smiejkowska/PA Wire) Mr Farage has said he wants a British equivalent of Doge – referring to the Elon Musk-run Department of Government Efficiency, which is slashing government spending in the US, in every council.

He said he would advise anyone working on climate change or diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives to be “seeking alternative careers very, very quickly”, in a speech in Durham on Friday.

“We want to give council taxpayers better value for money. We want to reduce excessive expenditure,” he said.

(Image: Sarah Caldecott) On Saturday, a newly elected Reform UK councillor said Durham County Council would be “getting the auditors in” right away to slash spending in areas like net zero and green initiatives.

“We’re getting the auditors in to see … actually what those jobs are, and if they’re good value for money, and if they’re not, well, the answer is, ‘Yeah, goodbye’,” Darren Grimes, a Durham councillor and former GB News presenter told the Today programme.

Ms McAnea said: “This is not the US. Thankfully, workers in the UK have laws to protect them from bad employers.

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“And soon employees will get even more protection from unscrupulous bosses when the government’s new employment rights come in.”

She said the new Reform UK councillors have “much to learn about local government” and will “quickly discover there’s nothing left to cut and many authorities are balancing on the edge of the financial precipice.”

“Most local authorities would love to be doing their core work, as Mr Farage says. But they simply don’t have the staff nor the resources to do even that.”