The Conservative Party has suspended a local leader after they attempted to form a shock coalition with the hard-left Green Party. The Conservative Group Leader on Worcestershire County Council was condemned by his own party this afternoon over the deal.
Reform UK won 24 seats on the County Council, short of the 29 required to form a majority. But in a shock move today, the Tories wrestled control with a bizarre rainbow coalition with the Green Party, the Liberal Democrats, and three independents.
This afternoon, a spokesman for the Conservative Party in London said that their group leader on the council, Adam Kent, had been 'suspended with immediate effect'. Kemi Badenoch was said to have 'instantly demanded this arrangement be stopped' as soon as she heard about the plot to sign a pact with the Green Party.
A spokesman for the party explained: 'The Conservative Party Chairman was very clear we did not approve of the arrangement at Worcestershire Council and it did not have our support. The Conservative Group Leader did not make our opposition clear to his fellow Worcestershire councillors and has been suspended pending investigation. CCHQ has made clear to our Councillors that this arrangement must not go ahead.'
Worcestershire Council has been in chaos since Reform took over. 'They have hiked council tax by 9% and Nigel Farage now says he wish Reform had never bothered trying to run it.'
A Tory source added that Ms Badenoch 'was clear she would not put up with this sort of nonsense'. Defending the pact this afternoon, the now-suspended Tory group leader said he could work with the Greens at a local level.
Mr Kent argued: 'On national policy there are many areas where we continue to disagree with the Greens - however, local government is not Westminster. Over the last year residents have suffered appallingly due to the instability of Reform in Worcestershire. At some point, responsible councillors have to stop standing on the side lines.'
