Reform UK permanently expels member who reported colleague over expenses allegations

Reform UK has permanently expelled Ed Hill from the party over two issues, including actions linked to his reporting of a colleague over allegations around electoral expenses.

Cllr Hill, who had been the election agent for Neil Stevens for part of the local election campaign, reported him to police after claiming Cllr Stevens had exceeded official spending limits.
Documents seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service showed Cllr Neil Stevens’ election campaign spending limit was £1,827.04. Each division has a set spending limit based on the number of voters in that area.
However, documents submitted by Cllr Stevens and his replacement election agent, Robert Edwin Sheridan Jr, showed he recorded expenditure of £1,995.72, an overspend of £168.68.
Cllr Neil Stevens said at the time he believed the spending limit only related to the money he had personally contributed to his campaign – £1,703.60 – and not to donations of £292.12 he received, meaning he believed he was below the spending limit.
Reform UK has now decided to permanently expel Cllr Hill, and outlined in a letter that its party secretary, Adam Richardson, has reviewed Cllr Stevens’ expenses and is “satisfied there is no overspend”.
This is because, the letter states, Cllr Stevens included items which did not need to be recorded on his election expenses form.
“Several items were wrongly included that pre-dated the regulated period,” Mr Richardson said.
“Once excluded, the return falls below the statutory limit, leaving headroom for the candidate. In law, this was an error of form, not a criminal breach, as recognised in Finch v Richardson [2008] WLR (D) 389.”
Cllr Hill, who now represents his Pinhoe & Mincinglake ward as an independent member of Devon County Council, said he had “acted in good faith” in terms of his decision to report Cllr Stevens. 
Reform UK removed Cllr Hill from his post as chairman of the Exeter branch in June, and later expelled him from the party after he sent a letter campaigning on the issue of auto-enrolment of eligible children for free school meals.
The letter was purportedly signed by all of Reform UK’s county councillors, however, the party claimed some members had not given their permission for their names to be used. 
Cllr Hill said he believed he had secured permission from Reform UK’s Devon members via conversations with one councillor in a WhatsApp group.
Cllr Hill appealed the decision to expel him in July, but has now been expelled permanently.
“The appropriate response would have been to raise the matter [of Cllr Stevens’ expenses] internally, where the position could have been explained and corrected,” the letter said.
“Cllr Hill’s conduct in referring a potential breach to the police was not improper in itself. Members are entitled to raise genuine concerns about legality and, had he stopped there, no complaint would lie against him.
“The difficulty arises from his decision to take the matter simultaneously to the media, in a way which created reputational harm for fellow members and for the party before the facts were tested.”
Cllr Hill stated that he had raised the issue with the party and to the county council before informing the media.
The Reform UK letter added that when internal disagreements are aired in the press, it “undermines trust, destabilises local campaigns, and exposes the party to reputational damage disproportionate to the underlying issue”.
“In both matters, the committee finds a consistent pattern of poor judgment,” the letter added.
“By attributing signatures to others without consent, and by escalating an administrative error into public allegations of fraud, Cllr Hill has shown disregard for the standards of integrity and loyalty expected of a Reform UK councillor.
“Whatever his intentions, the effect has been to destabilise colleagues, undermine confidence, and bring the party into disrepute.” 
Cllr Hill said: “I want to make it clear that I acted in good faith, and in line with my duty as an elected councillor, to ensure transparency and accountability in the democratic process.”
He added that while he was “disappointed” at the party’s decision, “I remain committed to representing the residents of Pinhoe & Mincinglake as an independent councillor”.
“My focus continues to be on serving the people who elected me,” he added.
Reform previously stated that Cllr Stevens had submitted an application for relief and that it expected this to be successful.
When contacted for comment on Cllr Hill’s permanent expulsion, Cllr Stevens said he “noted the content of the Reform press release and the clarification it provides”.
He said he could not make a further comment because of his decision to take the matter to the High Court to seek relief.