Politics live: Reform announces plan to rip up Equality Act as Farage unveils top team
Zia Yusuf given home affairs brief as leader unveils top team, claiming to be ‘voice of opposition’ to Labour
Reform UK would repeal the Equality Act on day one if it won the next election, Suella Braverman has announced.
The party’s new education, skills and equalities spokeswoman said Britain was being “ripped apart by diversity, equality and inclusion” policies – and the party would scrap the equalities minister, part of her own brief.
As Nigel Farage announced members of his front-bench team, he put Robert Jenrick in charge of Reform's plan for the economy, dubbing him the party's “shadow chancellor of the Exchequer”.
Mr Farage has unveiled four spokespeople in all who would form part of a cabinet if Reform won the next general election, saying his party was “the voice of opposition” to Labour.
He also announced Zia Yusuf will be Reform UK’s home affairs spokesman, while its new business, trade and energy spokesman Richard Tice said the party would create a new “super-department” in government.
Local government leaders are still reeling after Labour abandoned plans to postpone elections across 30 councils this May, in the wake of advice from lawyers following a legal challenge from Reform UK.
Farage promotes Jenrick and Braverman as he unveils new Reform front bench
Which parties run the councils where elections are no longer postponed?
Every Labour U-turn – from tractor tax to digital IDs – as Starmer rows back on postponing local elections
Tories could be hit harder by local election U-turn than Labour, top pollster says
Who is running in the Gorton and Denton by-election?
The people of Gorton and Denton will be heading to the polls next week to vote in what is expected to be a major test for Sir Keir Starmer and the Labour Party.
Among the candidates hoping to be elected are a plumber, a GB News presenter and a retired police officer, as Labour tries to fight off the threats from both sides of the political spectrum to retain the north west seat.
In a bid to appeal to disheartened Labour voters in the historically safe seat, the Green Party is pushing local plumber Hannah Spencer, while ex-academic Matt Goodwin, who has been criticised for comments on race and gender, is on Reform UK’s ballot.
Meanwhile, local councillor Angeliki Stogia is fighting to defend Labour’s 13,000 majority, after the party controversially blocked the popular Manchester mayor Andy Burnham from running.
Elsewhere, nine other candidates from the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and others will also be standing in the election on 26 February.
Politcal reporter Athena Stavrou takes you through who the candidates are here.
Who are the candidates running in the Gorton and Denton by-election?
In pictures: Farage announces Reform's top team
The 30 local councils where elections will now go ahead in May
The government has abandoned plans to postpone local elections for dozens of councils in May after receiving legal advice against the move.
Of the 63 councils able to apply for a delay, a total of 30 were due to go ahead with the postponement.
The councils that were due to have their elections delayed were:
- Adur District Council
- Basildon Borough Council
- Blackburn with Darwen Council
- Burnley Borough Council
- Cannock Chase District Council
- Cheltenham Borough Council
- Chorley Borough Council
- City of Lincoln Council
- Crawley Borough Council
- East Sussex County Council
- Exeter City Council
- Harlow District Council
- Hastings Borough Council
- Hyndburn Borough Council
- Ipswich Borough Council
- Norfolk County Council
- Norwich City Council
- Pendle Borough Council
- Peterborough City Council
- Preston City Council
- Redditch Borough Council
- Rugby Borough Council
- Stevenage Borough Council
- Suffolk County Council
- Tamworth Borough Council
- Thurrock Council
- Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council
- West Lancashire Borough Council
- West Sussex County Council
- Worthing Borough Council
Comment: Starmer’s local election U-turn will hit the Tories just as hard as Labour
Given Labour’s dire position in the polls, the May elections were always going to deliver an adverse judgement of the electorate – but Nigel Farage’s Reform look set to make gains in the shire councils that were once solid Tory strongholds, says Professor Sir John Curtice:
Starmer’s local election U-turn will hit the Tories just as hard as Labour
Reform accused of ‘pitching for votes of misogynists and homophobes’ with plans to scrap Equality Act
Reform UK has been accused of "pitching for the votes of misogynists, homophobes, racists and antisemites" after Suella Braverman, the party's new equalities chief, announced plans to scrap the Equality Act.
Nigel Farage used a press conference in London to unveil Reform’s top team, appointing Mrs Braverman as the party’s education, skills and equalities spokesperson.
Addressing the conference, she said Reform would repeal the Equality Act on day one if it wins the next election, claiming that Britain is being “ripped apart by diversity, equality and inclusion” policies.
The Independent’s Political Correspondent has the story:
Reform accused of ‘pitching for votes of misogynists’ with plan to scrap Equality Act
Watch: Yusuf promises Reform will rip up treaties that would prevent deportations as Farage's top team announced
Farage wants to 'legalise discrimination', says trades union boss
The general secretary of the Trades Union Congress has said that Nigel Farage and Reform want to legalise discrimination after the party announced its plans to scrap the Equality Act.
Paul Nowak said the proposals were “just the start” of Farage’s plans for working people.
He said repealing the Equality Act “means your boss could mistreat you because you're a woman, or black, or gay, or pregnant, or disabled, and there’d be nothing you could do about it.
“Basically, if you don’t look like Nigel Farage, or me, you could be in trouble.”
Suella Braverman, who announced the plans, said: “We will repeal the Equality Act, because we are going to work to build a country defined by meritocracy not tokenism, personal responsibility not victimhood, excellence not mediocrity, and unity not division.”
Yusuf declares himself 'shadow home secretary' in X bio
Zia Yusuf, Reform’s head of policy, has updated his X bio to “shadow home secretary”.
Yusuf, who is not an MP, was given the home affairs brief on Tuesday.
In announcing the role today, Mr Farage described Mr Yusuf as "relatively new to politics", adding: "He's only really been in the game for just over 20 months, but he's made a massive impression already, a very powerful public debater and television performer.
"Zia Yusuf will take on the role of shadow home secretary with, of course, particular reference to that one issue above all that has broken the trust of the British public with manifesto after manifesto just not telling the truth, I'm talking, of course, about both legal and illegal immigration."
Ed Davey criticises Farage for not naming health or foreign affairs spokespeople
Ed Davey has hit out at Reform’s leader for failing to include a health or foreign affairs spokesperson in the unveiling of his shadow cabinet.
In a post on social media, the Lib Dem leader said: “Not surprising Farage hasn't bothered to announce a health spokesperson - his entire team is populated by politicians who broke the NHS.
“They've also forgotten about a foreign affairs spokesperson, but I guess they will take their orders straight from Trump's White House anyway.”
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