Reform UK has expelled two Kent councillors, Robert Ford and Bill Barrett, following allegations of misconduct and internal disputes exposed in a leaked video.
The pair were formally removed via email on Monday, with party headquarters accusing them of undermining Reform UK’s interests and bringing the party into disrepute.
Ford, who represents Maidstone Rural West, had been suspended after an unofficial complaint from several female county council staff alleging misconduct. Barrett, a councillor for Ashford, was suspended after repeatedly criticising the council’s leadership. Both men were among five councillors suspended last week, though Oliver Bradshaw, Paul Thomas and Maxine Fothergill remain under investigation.
Ford has denied wrongdoing, insisting he has been given no details of the allegations. “There is not one shred of evidence against me,” he told the media.
The dispute follows the publication of leaked footage from an internal meeting in August, in which councillors complained of backbiting and being ignored by their group leader, Linden Kemkaran.
In the recording, Kemkaran told colleagues to fucking suck it up if they disagreed with her decisions, and described the £2.5bn-budget council as a shop window for what Reform could deliver nationally.
The turmoil leaves Reform UK with 48 sitting councillors in Kent, down from the 57 seats it won in May. Two others remain suspended and one has defected to Ukip.
Opposition councillors say the feud is now affecting council business. Liberal Democrat group leader Antony Hook said a key committee meeting on school transport, scheduled for Wednesday, had been cancelled, blaming chaos within the Reform ranks.
