Reform 'will refund' resignation by-election costs
Nick AllanReform UK has said it will effectively refund the cost of a by-election, following the resignation of one of its councillors less than two weeks after being elected.
Danielle Cavanagh stood down from her seat in the High Fell ward of Gateshead, after being voted in at the local elections on 7 May.
Reform, which took control of the council from Labour after 50 years, has pledged to mitigate its cost by having one of its incoming cabinet members forgo their special responsibility allowance (SRA), which is paid by the council, for this year.
It has been confirmed the High Fell by-election will be held on 9 July.
The SRA given to cabinet members is currently £19,689 per year and it is thought the by-election will likely cost between £18,000 and £20,000. Reform has not announced which cabinet member will forgo the allowance.
The party, which swept to victory by claiming 38 of the 66 seats available, said Cavanagh had quit due to added work commitments as her business is expanding.
Her resignation sparked criticism from opponents, who branded the situation "chaotic" and highlighted the cost to the public purse of holding a by-election.
Reform's leader in Gateshead Nick Allan told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) the party also planned to reduce the number of cabinet posts on the council by one.
He said: "We are, through our actions, saving the cost of this by-election for the council - this is something we believe puts us in uncharted territory.
"We are acutely aware that, for the best of reasons, Danielle cannot continue, but we do not want the council and the residents of Gateshead to be penalised.
"That is why we are putting our hands in our pockets."
Allan is expected to be formally appointed as council leader on Friday at the authority's annual general meeting.
The LDRS understands a number of Reform councillors will be absent from the meeting as they are attending a wedding abroad.
'Paying for mistakes'
Liberal Democrat opposition leader Ron Beadle welcomed Reform's offer to mitigate the by-election costs but said it "does not go far enough".
"The Lib Dem manifesto outlined several changes that we would make to save money from councillors' allowances whilst at the same time improving scrutiny," he said.
"The difference is that our savings would have gone back straight into the community rather than being used to pay for mistakes."
Labour leader John Adams, whose party was left with just 12 seats, said: "This isn't about who pays for the by-election, it's about residents being treated with contempt.
"People only voted 20 days ago and now they're being dragged back to the polls because someone's already walked away.
"Voters in High Fell deserve better than this chaos, if you ask for people's trust at an election, the least you can do is stick around longer than 10 days."
Green councillor Rachel Cabral said Reform's offer was "welcome" but did not change the fact that "the person voted for isn't the person going to be doing the job".
