The leader of Reform UK’s “flagship” council has been branded “captain chaos” by a union boss after councillor suspensions have created a “threat to public safety”.
Reform UK took control of Kent County Council (KCC) in May winning 57 of the 81 seats, but they now sit with 48 councillors after a string of suspensions and removals.
The chair and vice-chair of the Kent and Medway Fire Authority were two of the affected councillors, leaving the authority in “disarray”, according to the Fire Brigades Union (FBU).
Steve Wright, the FBU general secretary, called for the KCC administration to “get a grip” of the structures which appear to have broken down.
“This situation is a shambles and a threat to public safety. Without sound governance, fire and rescue services will not be able to do their jobs properly,” Mr Wright said. “The public has a right to expect that its emergency services are accountable to them and their elected representatives. At the moment, the structures for that have broken down in Kent.
“It’s time for the council administration to get a grip.”
Kent’s Fire and Rescue chief executive cannot sanction large spending without the Fire Authority, which is currently missing key members. Former chair of the Fire Authority Brian Black, along with Robert Ford, Paul Thomas and Oliver Bradshaw, have all been kicked out of Reform UK. Isabella Kemp, who was vice-chair, was suspended last week ahead of a full council meeting.
The FBU says that local union representatives have written to the KCC leader Linden Kemkaran asking for a meeting but have not received a response. With a budget of more than £2.5bn, Ms Kemkaran has said KCC is a “shop window” for what Reform UK could do if it ran the country.
Joe Weir, an FBU executive council member for the South East, said: “Kent firefighters work around the clock to keep the public safe. The least they deserve is political leadership that functions.
“Since Reform took over the council in May, we have seen a deeply worrying lack of care and diligence. The FBU has written to Linden Kemkaran, or ‘captain chaos’ as she is becoming known, to ask for a meeting, but nothing has been forthcoming.
“The FBU will continue to defend the safety and welfare of firefighters, as well as the safety of the public.”
In a speech in the council chamber last Thursday, Ms Kemkaran drew parallels between the recent suspensions and her son’s army training.
“Some had quit because they couldn’t hack it, others have been thrown out for bad behaviour, because they weren’t good enough or they weren’t team players – not up to the challenge or were simply unable or unwilling to accept discipline,” she said.
The co-Labour group leaders at KCC, Alistair Brady and Vince Maple have said it is clear that “the Reform UK chaos” is “spreading beyond KCC”.
“This undoubtedly poses more questions to be answered about the Reform UK political leadership of KCC who would have selected these councillors before sacking them,” they said.
Mark Hood, leader of the Green group at KCC, who is one of the members of the Fire Authority, has said the FBU are “absolutely right” to sound the alarm.
“Luckily we have some experienced figures still in place but this underlines why Reform are unfit to control the services that the people of Kent rely on,” said Mr Hood.
Reform UK has been contacted for comment.
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