Key takeaways:

• Huge gains by Reform as they take control of councils
• Significant losses for Labour and the Conservatives
• Lib Dems have held in their strongholds
• Greens build on their success in the General Election
• Does this mean a slowdown to local government reform?
• A delay to planning reform?
• How do you engage with a party like Reform?

After making some very difficult, and very unpopular, decisions in the last nine months these local elections were going to be difficult for the Government. Voters continued caution against the Conservatives has also resulted in a vacuum being filled by smaller parties.

Whilst these elections have not been as comprehensive as originally planned, considering six counties have postponed their elections to take part in the Devolution Priority Programme, there are still clear takeaways.

County Councils – a step change on local government reform?

County Councils have been dominated by the Conservatives for some time and so it could be expected that they would lose councillors in light of their performance at the General Election last July. The Lib Dems gaining control of Oxfordshire should be no surprise; they would’ve gained control of Surrey and potentially other counties had these elections not been postponed.

Reform gaining control of Kent however has the potential to derail the progress that has been made in planning for devolution in the county. Reform has made clear their opposition to the creation of unitary authorities to replace the current two-tier system, citing concerns over stifling the voice of the electorate and hindering accountability.

It is now incredibly likely that the new Reform administrations will campaign against local government reform and whilst the Minister for Local Government will ultimately have the final say, the Government will be mindful of their electoral chances in the next General Election.

How do you solve a problem like Nigel Farage?

The pace at which the Government continue with local government reform, and planning reform, will be a key indicator as to how seriously they take the rise of Reform. Whilst Reform had included pledges in their General Election manifesto to reform the planning system and fast-track housebuilding on brownfield sites, the party has pivoted away from this with Nigel Farage criticising the Labour Government’s planning reforms stating “they are quite prepared to totally override local district county councils, and local unitary authorities.”

Whilst county councils are not responsible for planning, only unitary councils such as Buckinghamshire, Wiltshire and Shropshire are the respective planning authorities in their counties, Reform have campaigned on issues unrelated to the responsibilities of local councils including planning reform.

No doubt the Government will hope that the much-anticipated housing and infrastructure building boom will help to pull voters away from Reform towards Labour in time for the next General Election.  However, Labour losing mayoral elections in areas that they gained MPs only ten months ago should be a cause for concern.

Combined Authority Mayors – headaches for the Government?

With the former Conservative MP turned Reform convert, Andrea Jenkyns, winning the Greater Lincolnshire Combined Authority Mayoral election, and Reform’s Luke Campbell winning the inaugural Hull and East Yorkshire Mayoral election, the aspirations for Mayors to become regional champions is likely to become a headache for the Government.

A slight reprieve for the Conservatives is regaining the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mayoralty, with Paul Bristow, former MP for Peterborough, convincingly beating Reform and Labour.

In control of significant budgets to drive economic growth in their regions, these new Mayors have an opportunity to help drive up support for their respective parties ahead of the next General Election whilst attacking the Government.

How do you engage with a party like Reform?

Firstly, it is incredibly important to note that local Reform candidates have a lot of flexibility from Reform HQ. Key campaigners, usually the party’s parliamentary candidate from the last General Election, across England were given considerable control over selecting candidates in their areas. So much so that Reform was able to field over 1,600 candidates and contest 99% of seats, higher than any other party. The scale of this operation overshadows the former record of UKIP in the 2013 local elections when they managed to field candidates in 75% of seats, local elections that were the high-water mark for that party. Therefore, we can expect new Reform councillors and Mayors to have a degree of autonomy.

In light of this, it will be very important to engage with new councillors and leadership early. Reform will be seeking to secure wins for their residents, particularly in local authorities that they now control, and so it is important that your objectives are aligned with theirs. New Mayors will want to encourage new jobs and growth, how will you help them achieve that? It is vital that you are positioned as helping them achieve their goals, not a hinderance.

Of course, it is important to note that many of the new Reform politicians, including Andrea Jenkyns in Greater Lincolnshire and the new MP for Runcorn and Helsby, Sarah Pochin, are former Conservative politicians, and do bring a level of experience to their new roles. Sarah Pochin has previously served as a councillor and Andrea Jenkyns previously served as a Junior Minister.

Although the Government is keen to finalise devolution before the next General Election, engagement with current political stakeholders is vital. It is likely that many will stand for the new unitary authorities and so engaging and building those relationships now will be beneficial in the long-term.

One thing is certain – the two-party system in English politics is well and truly over.

Image in the header: @House of Commons