Reform councillors issue complaints amid video row

Reform UK's Linden Kemkaran is the leader of Kent County Council

At least five Reform UK councillors have lodged official complaints about the leadership style of the top table at Kent County Council (KCC), the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) says.

It comes after a clip of the council's Reform UK leader Linden Kemaran was leaked to The Guardian showing her shouting and swearing during a council meeting.

Following the leak, councillors Paul Thomas, Oliver Bradshaw, Maxine Fothergill and Bill Barrett had the Reform whip removed pending investigation.

KCC has been contacted for a comment and Reform UK said: "As standard, we don't comment on internal complaints."

Some of the recent complaints were made during a time of growing tensions between the leadership and the backbenches, the LDRS said.

They were lodged with a regional Reform official, who passed them on to the party's London HQ to deal with.

There were also rumours of a "rebellion" over the summer and of a breakaway group of up to 15 members the LDRS said.

One of the complainants, who asked not to be identified, said: "This comes down to the way backbenchers feel they have been treated and how they are not listened to.

"There is a culture and a leadership style among those at the very top that a significant proportion of those backbenchers are not happy with.

"The complaints went to head office to be dealt with. However, no one sees this as a head office problem; it's a Kent problem. Pure and simple."

One complainant also said they were not convinced the four suspended councillors were the ones responsible for the video leak.

They said: "There is little, if any, firm evidence to support the accusations against the four councillors.

"If you could think of the people least likely to have leaked the video to The Guardian, they'd be on that list."

Both Thomas and Fothergill denied any involvement in the leak, while Barrett refused to comment "at this point".

Bradshaw has been approached for a comment.

After The Guardian published its report on Saturday afternoon, Kemkaran sent a message to members announcing a "thorough investigation" into the source of the leaks.

She branded the culprits "cowards" who had committed an act of "treachery".

On Sunday, it emerged a backbencher was considering gathering the required signatures to spark a vote of no confidence in Kemkaran, under section 14.43 of the KCC constitution.

Advised by party headquarters to do so, Kemkaran sent a note calling on members to sign a statement in support of her leadership after the suspensions were made to "counter all the negativity", according to the LDRS.

The statement said Kemkaran was the "best person for the job", who was leading with "courage, integrity and discipline".

Richard Streatfeild, the Liberal Democrat deputy opposition leader at KCC, said: "It looks like an act of increasing desperation because she is being told by Reform HQ to get members to back her or sack her.

"It looks more and more like it's now outside the leader's hands."

Reform UK swept into county hall in May having secured 57 of the 81 seats, ending nearly three decades of Conservative dominance.