Councillor first to defect from Reform to Labour

A county councillor has become the first politician in the country to defect from Reform UK to the Labour party.

Nigel Swales was elected to Lancashire County Council in May 2025 and represents Skelmersdale East.

He said his decision to join Labour came after "growing concerns about Reform's ability to deliver at a local level" and he had seen "first-hand" how "Reform simply doesn't have a serious plan".

Reform UK said: "Residents will rightly be feeling betrayed and disappointed that they have woken up with yet another Labour councillor today".

While several councillors and MPs have defected from the Conservative party to Reform and vice versa, this is the first defection from Reform to Labour.

Swales' defection takes the Labour group at the authority to six.

Leader of the Labour group, councillor Mark Clifford, said the defection was "fantastic news", adding: "We are really, really proud to actually get Nigel Swales to leave Reform and come to Labour, it's brilliant news and this is just going to be the start of many more."

Swales, who works as a paramedic, had previously been a member of the Labour party, although never in an active role.

He said he stood for Reform UK because he "wanted to make a difference for the people I represent".

But added: "Since then, the party has been embroiled in scandal and I've seen first-hand that Reform simply doesn't have a serious plan or the leadership needed to deliver real change - people in Lancashire deserve representatives focused on getting things done rather than generating headlines, sowing division or playing political games."

A Labour North West spokesperson said: "We're delighted to welcome Nigel Swales to the Labour Party.

"This first defection from Reform to Labour speaks volumes and we expect there will be many more - people who have seen Reform up close are discovering that behind the slogans there simply isn't a serious plan for governing or improving people's lives."

Swales is the second West Lancashire Reform county councillor to defect to another party. Leon Graham left to join the Conservatives in July this year.

At the time he said he had "come to view it as a party of protest rather than one preparing to govern."

Reform UK - whose majority at County Hall is now down to 51 - said: "After 34 years, voters in East Skelmersdale rejected Labour at the ballot box last May.

"Residents will rightly be feeling betrayed and disappointed that they have woken up with yet another Labour councillor today.

"Councillor Swales was receiving support from the Reform UK group for a significant amount of time leading up to his defection as a result of personal issues.

"This resulted in Reform councillors picking up his casework and dealing with his understandably lower attendance.

"We trust that the Lancashire Labour group is willing and able to provide a similar amount of support going forward."

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