Rampant Reform take over Calderdale Council after election misery for Labour
Plus, Calderdale MPs vow to hold new regime to account after vote shocker
Hello and welcome to The Calderdale Lead.
Well, the dust has now settled on a dramatic couple of days in local - and national - politics with
The quirk of Calderdale holding its first all-out election in more than two decades meant Reform UK were able to snatch control of the local authority on a night to forget for Labour.
My LDRS colleague John Greenwood has a full report below.
Plus, reaction from Calderdale’s two MPs who have vowed to hold the new regime to account on key local issues.
So, on with the news…
MPs vow to hold new Reform leadership to account as political tables turn
By Andrew Greaves
Both of Calderdale’s MPs have vowed to hold the new Reform-led borough to account after Nigel Farage’s party snatched control on a day and night to forget for Labour.
Josh Fenton-Glynn, MP for Calder Valley, and Halifax MP Kate Dearden, both acknowledged that the results, which saw Reform win 34 of the 54 seats up for grabs, were a sign that people were frustrated with the Government and the state of politics.
But they said that while the people had spoken, they would continue to take the Labour fight to Reform, especially on important local issues.
Ms Dearden said: “These results are a clear sign that many people feel frustrated, unheard and let down by politics. As Labour representatives, we must listen to that message with humility and respond with action.
“But while we reflect, I will never stop standing up for the values that I believe define Halifax and Calderdale: fairness, decency, compassion, and community. I fundamentally reject the politics of division and resentment. Our town has always been strongest when we come together, not when we are pulled apart.
“I’ll be writing to all the winning councillors and the new leadership, to ask about their plans for our town, to see where we can work together, and where we disagree. I’ll work with this council to make Halifax a better town for all, and if I think they’re taking the wrong path, I’ll make that very clear.”
Across the country, Labour lost more than 1,200 council seats while in Wales, Plaid Cymru won the Senedd elections effectively ending 100 years of Labour rule.
Those results has led many within the Labour Party to call, either publicly or privately, for Sir Keir Starmer to either stand down as Prime Minister or at least set a timetable for his departure.
But Mr Fenton-Glynn said he didn’t feel that blaming the results solely on the PM was helpful.
He said: “It’s impossible to look at [the] results without taking into account the national picture. Votes for both the Greens and Reform reflect people losing faith with the ability of mainstream elected parties to deliver meaningful change.
“I hear the challenge and will carry that message back to Westminster with me next week. We have to change and make that clearly visible.
“While I understand some of this has been wrapped up in the position of the PM, I don’t think that focusing on an individual will solve our problems, the country is not a football team which can change managers and hope results improve. We need to look root and branch at the changes we need.”
What did we learn from Thursday’s election results? The Lead’s Westminster editor Zoe Grunewald takes a look…
A night to forget for Labour as Reform snatch council control
By John Greenwood
It was a day – and a night – where Reform UK ran rampant to take overall control of Calderdale Council in a rare “all out” election which saw 54 seats in 18 wards up for grabs.
Reform set off at a blistering pace in the first nine wards – the count took place in two sessions of nine wards each in the afternoon and evening – and with 28 the basic winning line, had chalked up 19 seats by the end of the first half.
In the end, their 34 seats gives them a majority of 14 over all other parties.
It saw two group leaders, the retiring Mayor and the Mayor-elect for 2026-27 ousted.
The Conservatives were wiped out, the party not returning a single councillor.
Labour were reduced to a rump, with the Greens gaining some ground on their turf.
The all-out election was due to a Boundary Commission recommendation that Calderdale needed an extra seat to reflect population changes – the last was 21 years ago and Calderdale usually elects a third at a time.
This also means that as well as the new ward, other wards were renamed and even ones that kept the name might not have exactly the same electorate, hence each seat being a win.
But some were winning more than others and Reform took all three seats in Brighouse ward, Darren Commons, Mark Kimberlin and Steve Mycroft comfortably ahead and unseating Conservative group leader Howard Blagbrough and another sitting councillor on the old council, Brenda Monteith, in the process.
The party also saw seats chalked up in Halifax, beginning with Reform group leader Dan Sutherland from the old council returning in Illingworth and Mixenden with colleagues Nikki Kelly and Andrew Tagg – an ousted Labour member of the old council was Mayor-elect Shane Taylor.
In Halifax Town ward, Reform’s Joseph Gibbons, Keith Ingle and Jay Shaban ousted former Town ward Labour representatives Joe Thompson and Kelly Thornham.
Reform took all three seats in Elland, where Peter Hunt from the old council will be joined by James Cook and Nigel Hatfield, Labour’s David Veitch from the old council finishing fourth.
Another major upset came in Greetland ward where what has been a Liberal Democrat heartland saw all three seats go to Reform, Tom Garnett, Phil Pringle and Ruth Walker unseating Liberal Democrat group leader on the old authority, Paul Bellenger, and colleagues Christine Prashad and Sue Holdsworth.
Victories in what had been, like Brighouse, a Conservative heartland, Hipperholme and Lightcliffe saw Connor Dent, Tim Holden and Val Mycroft take the seats for Reform, beaten Conservatives including former leader, and retiring Mayor of Calderdale, Steven Leigh.
Green victories early on saw group leader on the old council, Martin Hey returned with long-standing colleague Dan Wood in Northowram and Shelf – but Reform picked up the third seat, David Banks finishing in second place.
The Greens also saw Hannah Mickleburgh-Benn and Margot Puddepha oust Labour rivals Jonathan Timbers and Ben Jancovich in Hebden Bridge and Todmorden East, but Labour’s Sarah Courtney, a Cabinet member on the old council, topped the poll.
For Labour, Luddenden Foot ward was a rare chance to smile, when Scott Patient and Katie Kimber, from the old council, were joined by Kate MacDonald to make it a clean sweep, fending off Reform’s challenge.
The second half of the count saw Reform add three more councillors with a returning Paul Hawkaluk joined by Mederic Payne and Stephen Padgett in the new ward of Salterhebble, Southowram and Skircoat Green.
The party also took Ovenden, where Paul Dale, Stephen Hodgson and Gordon Thorpe were comfortably clear, and Rastrick saw Simon Briggs, David Small and Jackie Wilson returned for Reform.
Mike Payne and Andrew Varley took two of the Sowerby Bridge seats for Reform but Labour stalwart Adam Wilkinson completed the roster for the ward.
Labour took the lion’s share of the seats in Wainhouse, where Ann Kingstone and Dave Mendes Da Costa were elected alongside Reform’s Cathy Featherstone.
Liberal Democrat stalwart Ashley Evans led the poll in Warley and party colleague Chris Wadsworth was elected alongside him, but Reform notched up another seat through Irena Corkish.
The Greens scored a notable victory in Todmorden West, Jamie Furlong, Sarah Goodfellow and Oscar Seville-Leach defeating a Labour trio including two Cabinet members, Silvia Dacre and Diana Tremayne.
Park ward saw representatives of three different groups returned – Independent Osman Khalil topped the poll, with Mohammed Shazad Fazal returned for Labour and Shakir Saghir back for the Workers Party.
Reform bagged two of the Ryburn seats through Chris Green and Alex Greenwood, with Independent Leah Webster topping the poll as the night closed out.
The final tally is: Reform UK, 34 seats; Labour, eight seats; Greens, seven seats; Liberal Democrats, two seats; Independents, two seats; Workers Party, one seat.
That’s in for this edition, thanks for reading!
I’ll be back in your inboxes on Wednesday with another edition as a new political dawn beckons in our borough.
Until then, enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Andrew