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Reform UK’s influx of newly-elected councillors are facing rising local anger in parts of the country after scrapping local preparations to deal with catastrophic man-made climate change.
Meetings to discuss contingency planning for rising global temperatures have been cancelled at a series of local authorities now controlled by Nigel Farage’s party, with even committees scheduled to discuss the likelihood of increased flooding facing the axe.
At Derbyshire County Council on Monday June 16, local residents gathered outside to protest Reform UK’s immediate scrapping of the authority’s climate change committee and cancellation of all climate-related meetings.
Protesters claimed these actions leave communities across Derbyshire exposed to worsening climate threats.
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Derbyshire campaigners stood and held placards and banners with images of flooding, wildfires and ruined crops outside County Hall, highlighting Reform UK’s fossil fuel funding.
The protest was planned to coincide with the Regulatory Planning Committee meeting. However, the meeting was cancelled. Reform councils, most prominently Kent, are cancelling swathes of meetings as they try and get to grips with power.
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Another Reform-controlled body, Lincolnshire County Council, has scrapped its flood management scrutiny committee, saying it would save money. The opposition Labour party there described it as a “reckless” which would put residents at risk.
Residents protesting this week say they will keep returning to highlight “Reform UK’s failures to protect people from climate change until they make climate action a top priority”.
The local climate campaigners argue that Reform UK’s “fossil fuel funding, denial of climate science, attacks on Net Zero and deliberate dismantling of climate governance” will make them culpable for climate-related hardships locals face.
Derbyshire has already experienced widespread flooding in recent years. Storm Babet in October 2023 inundated around 1,600 homes and businesses, causing millions of pounds in damage across Chesterfield and nearby towns, and many residents remain in recovery over a year later.
Derbyshire farmers have also struggled with excessively wet and warm winters leaving fields waterlogged, delaying spring sowing and damaging crops.
All over the UK, farmers have reported negative impacts from the record breaking dry spring of 2025. This year there were wildfires in the Peak District National Park due to unusually warm and dry conditions, the campaigners note.
According to a New York Times analysis of Reform’s donation records, the party collected £4.75m in 2024, with 40% originating from donors who have “publicly challenged climate science or hold stakes in fossil fuel or other environmentally harmful sectors”.
