First councillor defects from Reform to Labour

While many of us are used to Conservaties defecting to Reform and vice versa, what we haven’t seen before is a Reform councillor defecting to the Labour Party.

Nigel Swales was elected to Lancashire County Council in May 2025 as a Reform councillor and represents Skelmersdale East, however he has defected to the Labour Party saying that he had “growing concerns about Reform’s ability to deliver at a local level” and he had seen “first-hand” how “Reform simply doesn’t have a serious plan”.

Leader of the Labour group, Councillor Mark Clifford, told the BBC that the defection was “fantastic news”, adding: “We are really, really proud to actually get Nigel Swales to leave Reform and come to Labour, it’s brilliant news and this is just going to be the start of many more.”

Farage can’t be best pleased that his party continues to make the headlines for all the wrong reasons, as he lurches from one scandal to the next. Indeed, Swales cited Reform being embroiled in scandal as one of the main reasons he left Reform.

He told the BBC: “I’ve seen first-hand that Reform simply doesn’t have a serious plan or the leadership needed to deliver real change – people in Lancashire deserve representatives focused on getting things done rather than generating headlines, sowing division or playing political games.”