A newly elected Reform UK councillor has resigned after allegedly posting racist, antisemitic, and anti-Muslim comments on social media. Stuart Prior, who won the highest vote total in his Essex ward, stepped down days after the election amid growing scrutiny of the party's candidates.
Prior allegedly described white people as the 'master race,' called Muslims 'rats,' and celebrated the rape of a Sikh woman. He also reportedly suggested black people should be 'segregated' and questioned complaints about the slave trade. Reform UK confirmed his resignation and revoked his membership.
The revelations come as the anti-extremism group Hope not Hate compiled a dossier on several Reform councillors accused of hate speech. Other cases include Derek Bullock, who allegedly used racial slurs after the Manchester Arena attack, and Jay Leslie Cooper, who reportedly called the Holocaust a hoax.
The Muslim Council of Britain warned that such rhetoric risks normalising racism in politics. Reform UK has distanced itself from the individuals, with some councillors having their party membership revoked.
