"No need for by-election" after councillor switches to Reform UK, says Central Beds council leader

The comment follows social media calls for an election after councillor Patrick Hamill (Houghton Regis East) announced he had joined Reform.

Councillor Hamill said opponents will always ask for a by-election, but he intends to continue serving residents to the best of his ability.

When asked about the calls, CBC leader councillor Adam Zerny (Independent Alliance, Potton) said: “Pat was elected as a UKIP councillor in 2019, and in the years that followed he became an Independent councillor.

“I didn’t demand that there be a by-election then, and I’d be a hypocrite if I demanded that there should be one now because he’s no longer calling himself an Independent.

“But the truth is residents elect someone because they believe that person will represent their views, as a councillor. And whatever people say about Pat, he does care about the area he lives in.

“I can’t say whether residents of Houghton Regis believe Pat is any less capable of representing them now that he has joined Reform, but if huge numbers of them argued for a by election on this basis, I suspect he would not ignore them.

“There have been many occasions where councillors have changed from one group to another in recent years.

“I’m sure Pat won’t mind me pointing out that he won a much bigger election majority when he stood as an Independent.”

Councillor Hamill said he had received “great comments locally”.

“Of course, opponents will always ask for a by-election, but how do they know I am now not serving my residents?” he said.

“Nothing has changed in what I do locally for my residents.

“In fact, when I left UKIP because they were never in touch with my emails.

“I had two years to go and was re-elected with a larger majority, so why would I waste more of our council tax on a by-election?

“Two Lib Dems defected to the Independent Alliance with very little fuss,” he added.

“A Green Party member joined another Independent group, but no fuss was made.

“I know the very mention of Reform brings the concerns from other political parties – that their candidates could lose more votes or will not get elected at all.

“There is that smell of fear from them in the air.

“Their time will come in two years’ time.

“In the meantime, I will be doing what I feel I do best — and that is to serve the residents of Houghton Regis to the best of my ability,” he said.