Ex-Reform UK councillors create new group
Two Sheffield councillors elected for Reform UK have left the party and formed a new group on the city council, called the New Chartist Reform Group. Their move creates a separate local political group, and they say they want to focus on residents’ concerns and improving their wards.
Mick Lee left Reform to become an independent, while Robert Hanson said he had not renewed his party membership. The group’s name refers to the 19th-century Chartist movement, which campaigned for democratic reform and working-class voting rights. Both councillors identify disability issues and anti-social behaviour as priorities, with Hanson advocating a zero-tolerance approach to disorder.
- Two former Reform UK councillors have formed a new Sheffield council group.
- The group says it will focus on local residents and disability issues.
- Tackling anti-social behaviour is among its stated priorities.
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Sheffield City Council is the local authority responsible for services and decisions across the city. Councillors are elected to represent residents in particular wards, and those who share a party or political outlook can organise as a group on the council.
Mick Lee and Robert Hanson were elected as Reform UK councillors. Lee has become an independent, while Hanson says he did not renew his party membership; they have set up a separate council group. Its name refers to the Chartists, a 19th-century movement that campaigned for political and voting reforms.
The councillors say they want to focus on residents’ concerns, including disability issues and anti-social behaviour. Their new group gives them a shared local identity on the council, while their stated priorities indicate the issues they want to raise in their wards.