Reform leader hits back after Labour MP brands West Northamptonshire Council ‘run-of-the-mill’ and 'without a plan'

Labour MP for Northampton South Mike Reader appeared as a guest on Iain Dale’s radio show on national broadcaster Leading Britain’s Conversation (LBC).

During the interview, Mr Reader was asked how difficult it was to work with WNC now that it was run by Reform UK.

Speaking on LBC, he said: “I haven’t got one of those crazy Reform councils in West Northamptonshire – not too crazy anyway. They want to work cross-party.

“But the Reform group in West Northamptonshire came in without a plan, without any kind of manifesto, and what’s happened is the council is now run by officers. I always thought actually if politicians got out of the way things would be quicker, but what I realised is without any political emphasis or what people want to achieve, you’ve just got kind of a run-of-the-mill council that wants to do nothing.”

Responding to Mr Reader’s comments, Councillor Mark Arnull, leader of West Northamptonshire Council, said: “Any suggestion that we are operating without a plan couldn’t be further from the truth.

“By September, just four short months after we swept into power, full council adopted our delivery plan which clearly sets out the administration’s mission, focus and measures of success.

“To claim there is no plan, and that the council is run of the mill and wants to do nothing, is not only factually incorrect but is also demeaning to the staff that worked so hard under the previous administration and continue to do so under this administration.”

A council spokeswoman added: “Shortly after the May elections, the administration confirmed its support for the One West Northants Plan, which had been formulated under the previous administration using broad stakeholder input and meeting the requirements of the corporate peer review carried out in October 2024.

“The administration then worked at pace to formulate their own plan to ensure delivery of the recently launched One West Northants Plan. The WNC delivery plan was agreed at full council in September 2025, and a copy can be found at this link: Item 08 – Appendix A – WNC Delivery Plan.pdf.”

When Reform got into power in May 2025, opposition leaders of other parties criticised them for having “no manifesto”. In response at the time, Cllr Arnull said: “We will bring a new approach to politics that has not been seen around this area for a very long time.”