Watch the moment a council meeting spiralled out of control while a Reform councillor delivered a damning takedown of the Labour authority after ditching its local elections in May.
Basildon Borough Council’s Labour leader Gavin Callaghan declared the decision to deny thousands of Essex residents their say this May was “irreversible” after the extraordinary debate.
The move will put off the election of 14 seats, which were due to take place in less than four months’ time.
However, the controversial decision was met with fury as 50 residents crammed into the council meeting to voice their anger.
Reform UK councillor Sam Journet stood up to deliver a passionate case against the council’s move.
“Democracy is not optional,” he bellowed. “Democracy is not an inconvenience.
“Democracy is the foundation of a stable, fair and prosperous society. We vote our way to change. We vote our way to a county.
“And when you take that vote away for any reason, you break the trust with the people you’re meant to serve you.”
Councils up and down the nation have insisted local elections would be far too expensive to hold when they would have to repeated a year or two later, under Labour’s forecast local government reorganisation.
But “residents are not interested in excuses anymore”, Mr Journet declared. “They’re not buying them. And frankly, you shouldn’t.”
Reform and Labour went head-to-head at the extraordinary meeting
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“This is not governance. This is chaos. Let’s be crystal clear, this is not about local government reorganisation. This is about change. And that change is needed now. Not in 2027, not in 2028.
“Now the argument about cost is no longer makes more sense. The officers are already running elections. The polling stations are already open for Essex County Council.”
The Reform councillor continued: “It’s a defining moment, a powerful moment, and every single one of you across the chamber on the opposition benches will be remembered for what you’ve done today.
“And now I want to hand the final word back to the people who matter most. The residents standing in this chamber today. We ask you, do you want to vote?” he concluded.
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Steve Reed has allowed local elections up and down Britain to be postponed
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GETTYAnd, to his vindication, a resounding “yes” from residents echoed around the council’s chamber.
But the passionate debate soon turned furious, with the Labour leader being accused of acting like a “dictator” by postponing the elections – a decision which has culminated in 4.5 million Britons being denied their vote.
Meanwhile, another councillor was said to have been left “in floods of tears after being ultra-aggressively verbally abused and threatened”, Mr Callaghan claimed.
Reform has denied the accusations, in addition to other eyewitnesses present in the chamber.
Mr Callaghan said: “I get that tensions are high and people feel strongly. I don’t mind people voicing their disagreements.
“But yet again we have female Council officers in floods of tears after being ultra aggressively verbally abused and threatened by Reform UK’s Sam Journet.”
The Labour councillor added: “It cannot be right that women are shaking and in tears because a thug continues to behave like this, unabated. No wonder he won’t publish his DBS.
“Once again, Essex Police, Basildon District, nowhere to be seen.”
Firing back, a Reform spokesman blasted: “Councillor Callaghan has no shame. If he didn’t act like a dictator by robbing thousands of residents of their democratic rights then people wouldn’t get angry.”