Nigel Farage's warning to Durham County Council staff as East Durham voters help sweep Reform UK to power

Reform UK gained 65 of the authority’s 98 seats to assume overall control following the May 1 poll.

After the results were announced on Friday afternoon, Labour were the biggest losers on the council by losing 38 of their 42 seats.

Among the areas where their support dwindled was in their East Durham heartland.

They now only have one councillor – who himself only squeezed through by eight votes – across seven wards south of Seaham and with Reform UK taking the remaining 11 seats.

Speaking during a visit to Newton Aycliffe Big Club to celebrate with supporters, Mr Farage said: “I would advise anybody who’s working for Durham County Council on climate change initiatives or diversity, equity and inclusion or things that you go on working from home, I think you all better really be seeking alternative careers very, very quickly.

“We want to give council taxpayers better value for money. We want to reduce excessive expenditure. We want to find out who the long-term contracts are signed with and why, and reduce the scale of local government back to what it ought to be.”

In the Blackhalls and Hesledens seat, veteran Labour councillor Rob Crute squeezed through as the ward’s only representative by just eight votes from Reform’s Gary Johnson.

In Castle Eden and Passfield, Scott Woodhouse was elected for Reform UK with more votes than the other five candidates.

Meanwhile, in Easington and Shotton, where three seats were contested, John Bailey, Howard William Brown and Louise Taylor all triumphed for Reform UK.

It was a similar story in Horden and Dene House with Dawn Bellingham and John Cottier clinching the two positions.

In Peterlee, Dawn Saunders and Steven Franklin were victorious for Reform UK.

In Thornley and Wheatley Hill, Neil Craggs won the only seat while her Reform UK colleagues Mary-Lynn Franklyn and Susan Husband took the two Trimdon and Wingate posts.

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