THE leader of Reform UK says Staffordshire would benefit from a unit focusing on the reduction of council spending.
Nigel Farage made his comments during a campaign visit to the county ahead of the 1st May elections.
He said that if victorious, his party would look carry out major efficiency cuts reminiscent of the controversial Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) unit, led by Elon Musk in the USA.
Reform UK will be fielding candidates for all 62 county council seats in Staffordshire.
He said that councils were not doing enough to cut wasteful spending – and said his party would aim to do something about this, claiming that they would be more than just a protest vote.
Mr Farage said:
“I can understand why you might want to protest – there is quite a lot to protest about. But no, we are incredibly upbeat and positive.
“We’re not sticking two fingers up to the world. We’re saying the Government has failed us, both at local and national level and we are the bright optimistic future. We are the voice of change.
“If we do well in these Staffordshire elections, we are going to do things differently. Number one, there will be no more work from home – there’ll be no more slacking.
“We’ll be looking to reduce the size of local government. We’ll get some auditors in and find out why so many millions of pounds has been spent over the years on agency staff and recruitment companies.
“Does Staffordshire need a DOGE department? You bet your life it does. This is taxpayers’ money we’re talking about.”
But Mr Farage said he was “not convinced” by the arguments in favour of replacing county and district councils with unitary authorities, which is set to happen in Staffordshire in the next few years.
He said Reform would “ask questions” about the planned local government reorganisation.
Reform fielded candidates in all but one parliamentary seat across Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire in last year’s general election and polled around 20 to 25% of the vote in each constituency.
In most seats this was only good enough for third place, and arguably the party’s main impact in Staffordshire was helping Labour candidates by taking votes away from the Conservatives.
Mr Farage would not say exactly what success would look like for Reform UK at these local elections. He said:
“I know we’re going to do well. I know that in this county we’re going to be competing and in a position to potentially win many, many seats.”
A full list of Staffordshire County Council candidates across Lichfield and Burntwood can be found here.
