At Dudley Council’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) on May 28, Reform UK’s leader raised serious concerns over what he described as a “grubby deal” orchestrated by rival parties to marginalize his councillors from key committee roles.
The Conservative and Labour groups jointly voted to determine membership of crucial council committees, including the cabinet and scrutiny panels tasked with holding decision-makers accountable. Out of 14 statutory, scrutiny, and other committee leadership roles, Reform UK secured just one position—Cllr Angela Blythe was appointed vice chair of the Children’s Corporate Parenting Board.
Labour, positioned as the third largest group behind the Conservatives and Reform UK, gained control of important watchdog committees such as core business scrutiny, audit, health and adult social care, and standards.
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Reform UK leader Cllr Marco Longhi criticized the arrangement: “We are the second largest party with 23 councillors, just four short of the minority Conservative administration. It was predictable yet frustrating to witness the Tories and Labour collude to dominate all influential committee positions, effectively sidelining the second largest party on the council.”
The appointments were confirmed by a named vote, supported by Conservatives, Labour, and The Black Country Party, while Reform UK and the Liberal Democrats opposed the decisions.
Cabinet and shadow cabinet memberships were also ratified, with the shadow cabinet representing the official opposition, which is Reform UK. Members holding chair, vice chair, cabinet, and shadow cabinet positions receive special responsibility payments supplementing the basic councillor allowance of £12,500.
Responding to the accusations, Dudley Council leader Cllr Patrick Harley denied any secret deal with Labour, emphasizing openness to collaboration with all groups, including Reform UK. “Following the local elections, I extended an offer to work with all parties. Despite claims of a stitch-up, Reform UK councillors and their deputies do receive special allowances, and about eight others hold opposition spokesperson roles. Allocating committee seats proportionally ensures fairness, and giving more would be disproportionate,” he explained.
Labour group leader Cllr Shaukat Ali pointed out that Reform UK councillors voted against a set of appointments that included their own positions. “If Reform claims voters entrusted them with responsibilities, they didn’t seize the opportunity. They effectively voted against themselves. It would be interesting to see if they retract their involvement in those roles. If they believed they had better solutions, they should have presented an alternative; their approach was completely inept,” he stated.