An irate mum-of-one is demanding answers from her local MP after her vote in the upcoming May elections was “taken away from me”.
It comes after Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner announced on Tuesday the councils that were granted permission to delay their elections under Labour’s devolution plan to turn 18 two-tier councils in England into unitary authorities.
Eighteen councils requested to delay elections in their areas, but only nine were granted permission, including Jane’s hometown of Essex.
The long-standing Conservative voter, who defected to Reform last year, was looking forward to voting for her new party in her constituency of Castle Point.
She had grounds for optimism – pollsters from Find Out Now project Reform winning the seat currently held by Conservative MP Rebecca Harris if an election were held tomorrow.
An irate mum-of-one is demanding answers from her local MP after her vote in the upcoming May elections
Getty Images
“I think Castle Point was going to turn turquoise,” she told GB News.
However, under Labour’s devolution plans, her local council will be merged with Southend and unitary authority Thurrock.
This means the election will be postponed until May 2026.
Jane is fuming. She tells the People’s Channel that “my democratic right as a citizen to vote for my local councillor has been taken away from me”.
She has reached out to her local MP but heard nothing.
“I emailed her about it, told her my name and address, but haven’t heard a peep.”
The mum-of-one feels particularly aggrieved about being left in the dark as she feels it was imposed on her community without consent.
“This was forced on me. I had no say in the matter. No letter through the post,” she said.
Reform UK has blasted the move, accusing Labour of a cynical plot with the Conservatives
X/ Nigel Farage
She is even contemplating not paying her council tax until she gets answers.
“I’m going to keep that money aside. I’m refusing on these grounds. Until I know that I’m doing something actually unlawful, I’m not going to go through with it,” Jane added.
Local council leaders insist that this allows for a seamless transition to the new system, avoiding the disruption and expense of elections during a critical period of restructuring.
However, Reform UK has blasted the move, accusing Labour of a cynical plot with the Conservatives to thwart the insurgent party’s rise in areas where it was expected to make significant gains.
GB News has approached Castle Point Borough Council for comment.