A year ago, Reform UK took control of ten county councils. We said we would run them differently — that we would treat the public's money with the respect it deserves and root out the waste that has been baked into local government for decades. One year on, the party says its councils have identified £700 million in savings. The doubters said it could not be done. It is being done.

A Different Way to Run a Council

For too long, local government has operated on a simple principle: spend the budget, then ask for more. Costs were never questioned. Contracts were never challenged. Every year the council tax bill went up and the service got worse. Reform UK rejected that culture from day one.

Inspired by the idea of a dedicated efficiency unit, our councils went line by line through the books — auditing spending, scrutinising contracts and asking the one question the old guard never dared to ask: does the taxpayer actually need to pay for this? That is not radical. It is basic responsibility. It just happens to be radical for British local government.

Where the Savings Come From

The party's efficiency chief, Richard Tice, has set out that Reform-led councils identified more than £325 million in savings in the first year and have brought forward proposals worth a further £400 million for the year ahead. The savings come from the unglamorous work of good government: cutting consultancy bills, ending wasteful projects, challenging bloated contracts and trimming the layers of management that grew fat under the old parties.

None of this means cutting the services people rely on. It means making sure the money reaches them instead of disappearing into overheads. Every pound saved from waste is a pound that does not have to come out of a resident's pocket.

The Establishment Does Not Like Being Audited

Predictably, the people who presided over the waste are furious that someone is finally counting it. Labour figures and the usual commentators have rushed to dispute the numbers and pick at the figures. Of course they have. Nobody who built the bonfire enjoys watching it get put out. But the direction of travel is clear: councils that for years simply raised taxes are now being forced to justify how they spend.

Scrutiny is healthy. Reform UK welcomes it, because the more closely you look at how the old parties ran these councils, the worse it gets for them.

This Is Only the Beginning

One year in, the case is made. Reform UK does not just talk about efficiency — we deliver it. While Labour reaches for the taxpayer's wallet at every turn, Reform-run councils are proving there is another way: spend less, waste less, and respect the people who foot the bill. Give Reform UK the chance to do this nationally, and imagine what could be saved.