New Restore Britain group on Kent County Council to choose leader next week
Earlier this week it was revealed that seven former Reform councillors had joined the new Restore party
A former Reform UK councillor says she is putting herself forward to lead the new Restore Britain grouping at County Hall.
Maxine Fothergill was one of several members kicked out of the Nigel Farage-led party last November amid the fallout over the leaking to the media of a video showing a high-level meeting.
Earlier this week it was revealed that seven former Reform councillors had joined the new Restore party and would form the third largest group at KCC.
Cllr Fothergill says an election for the leadership of this group will be held on Tuesday (24 February), and she feels she’s the right person to lead it.
Her views come as a Reform dismissed the seven as “dregs”.
She said: “What attracts me to Restore Britain is it is serious about governance and accountability and restoring trust in public life.
“It supports commitment to strong borders, lawful migration, economic responsibility, free speech within the law, and putting British interests first.”
“As an independent councillor, you’re a very small voice in a large room.
“But if you have those numbers and the backing of a party behind you, which has your same values, then that’s your opportunity to be able make a difference locally.”
Fothergill believes her 14 years’ experience as a councillor, including eight as a Tory in the London Borough of Bexley, make her a strong candidate.
As previously reported, she was kicked out of Reform by KCC leader Cllr Linden Kemkaran over claims she’d failed to declare important information when she was vetted as a candidate.
Restore Britain is headed by millionaire businessman Rupert Lowe – who is MP for Great Yarmouth, having won the seat for Reform in 2024 before leaving the party.
Joining Cllr Fothergill at County Hall are: Isabella Kemp (Sheppey); Brian Black (Maidstone rural south); Paul Thomas (Maidstone south); Oliver Bradshaw (Maidstone central) and Robert Ford (Maidstone rural west) and Dean Burns (Ashford East).
All of them, apart from Cllr Burns, left Reform during the acrimonious period following the video leak, which showed Cllr Kemkaran telling her colleagues to “f** suck it up”.
A former Reform councillor not joining the new grouping, however, is Ashford Rural South’s Bill Barrett, who will continue to sit as an independent
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), he says he thinks it “highly likely that more at KCC will join Restore. I think it’s just the beginning”.
He said: “While I wish my colleagues at KCC who have moved to Restore Britain the absolute best, such a move wasn’t for me.
“Restore is too right-wing for my political appetite, and really, in my heart, I am an old-fashioned, centrist, politician.”
Reform swept to power in Kent last May – taking 57 out of 81 seats.
However, in the nine months since, it has lost 10 members to expulsions, factional spats and defections.
The current make up at County Hall is: Reform UK – 47; Liberal Democrats – 12; Restore Britain – 7; Conservatives – 5; Green – 4; Independent – 3; Labour – 2 UKIP -1.
Mr Lowe had the Reform whip removed last March amid allegations of bullying in his parliamentary office, something he and others claimed were trumped up to remove him for factional reasons.
He has told how he disagreed with Mr Farage on the issue of “mass deportations” and his support for the removal of more than a million people from the UK.
As such, Restore Britain is considered to be a more radically right-wing party than Reform UK.
While Cllr Kemkaran hasn’t responded to requests for a comment about her former colleagues, a Reform UK source said: “Restore are welcome to our dregs.
“Let’s not forget that six of these councillors were expelled from Reform for dishonesty and deceptive behaviour.
“If this is Restore’s bar for councillors, then it must be very low indeed.”
With seven members, Restore is now the third biggest group on KCC – five behind the Liberal Democrats.
Cllr Fothergill predicts a series of defections would see it become the official opposition.
Lib Dem leader, Cllr Antony Hook, isn’t overly concerned, saying: “It’s hard to keep track of the ever-changing groups leaving Reform. We are 12, and that’s quite a bit bigger than seven.
“I can’t control how many more leave Reform and how they choose to form new factions, so whatever the situation, the Lib Dems will keep working hard and being an effective opposition.
“The hard left are famous for splitting into lots of factions; we’re seeing it with the new hard right too. There seems to be more stability in the sensible centre-ground.”
Meanwhile, Greens’ leader, Cllr Mark Hood, has also slated the new party, saying: “When I spoke to Reform UK voters on their doorsteps last April, they told me they were voting for Nigel, now they find they have voted for Rupert Lowe.
“They were not voting for their local candidates, most of them couldn’t name those candidates.
“Now we have a situation where the poisonous atmosphere at County Hall has seen most of the expelled former Reform members driven into the arms of Restore.”