AXING workers in climate change policy and diversity, equality and inclusion roles DEI’ would save just 0.02% of Staffordshire County Council’s budget, analysis has shown.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage promised a “re-prioritisation” towards core services at the county council following his party’s landslide election victory last month.
Following his party’s landslide election win last month, he suggested that staff in areas such as climate change and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) should “go look for another job”.
But figures released by the county council, following a Freedom of Information request, shows that just four employees work in climate change policy, while none at all are classed as working within DEI.
The climate change officers together cost £153,000 a year – out of an overall net revenue budget of £735million – suggesting that it is not an area where significant savings can be made.
Around two-thirds of the council’s revenue spending goes to adults’ and children’s social care, with the authority overspending its special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) budget by £27million last year.
In response, Reform UK points to the county council setting aside £3.5million for a six-year climate change action plan, along with spending on things such as gender pay gap and equality reports.
A spokesperson for the party said:
“Reform UK is committed to cutting waste in local authorities, including unnecessary spending on pointless DEI initiatives and the damaging climate change agenda.
“This money should be spent on frontline services that benefit local people in Staffordshire, such as adult social care, SEND provision and filling potholes.”
Staffordshire is one of ten councils now controlled by Reform UK following last month’s elections.
The party has set up a so-called DOGE unit – named after the American Department for Government Efficiency previously headed by Elon Musk – which will be going through the finances of the councils with aim of identifying savings.
Cabinet members at the county council will discuss a “review of efficiency” at their first meeting next Wednesday.
Dr Phil Catney, senior lecturer in politics at Keele University, suspects that Reform’s DOGE unit will struggle to find significant savings at the council, particularly in the areas highlighted by Mr Farage.
He said:
“It’s a bit of a red herring to say that there’s lots of money being spent on DEI.
“We don’t really have ‘DEI champions’ in this country – it’s usually a part of someone else’s job. And the Equality Act puts a requirement on councils to be mindful of these things. You could choose to de-prioritise them, but you could end up losing money if you get sued for discriminatory practices.
“In terms of climate change, it’s quite a broad element, including some things like energy efficiency, which Reform voters might welcome if it saves money. The £153,000 cost of climate change policy officers is not really a credible answer to the fiscal problems councils have.
“The difficulty for DOGE is that these are national issues, so unless you have a Reform government that changes policies then local authorities will still have to do what they’re required to do. And Staffordshire County Council has hardly been a bastion of very left wing progressive thought under the Conservatives.
“There are savings that can be made at councils – the amount of money going to consultants for example. But there are structural elements like the adult social care bill, which is a massive thing that’s draining councils’ reserves. It’s been a national government decision not to sort that out.
“When they produce their first council budget, Reform might talk up things like climate change, but it won’t even make a tiny bit of the savings they need to make.”
The county council’s climate change action plan includes a raft of individual measures which were due to be carried out between 2021 and 2025.
Actions included organising more walking bus routes, installing energy efficient street lighting and electric vehicle charging points, and campaigns to encourage recycling and home composting.
The county council recorded an overall underspend of £5.3million in 2024-25, although “significant pressures” were seen in social care, according to a cabinet report.
The £27million SEND overspend is not included in the final outturn position due to a statutory override which allows councils to keep these deficits separate.