THE furore over Labour-run Thurrock Council's decision to seek postponement of local elections in the borough is far from over – and the matter may now be decided in the High Court next month.

As reported on Thurrock Nub News last week, the council's Labour cabinet submitted reasons to the government why it did not have the capacity to run elections at the same time as preparing for local government reorganisation (LGR).

And Labour members followed up 24 hours later by physically voting for the cancellation, defeating a Reform motion saying that the elections should go ahead.

Thurrock's position is replicated by 30 councils across the country – most but not all being Labour-led – prompting accusations that Labour was scared of facing the electorate because of the rising popularity of Reform UK.

Reform has responded by taking the matter to the High Court – where a judge granted their request for a review of the government's position – and the legality of cancelling scheduled elections.

Mr Justice Chamberlain yesterday ruled that Reform's argument has merit, and he has stopped the government from enforcing any cancellations until a major legal showdown, now set to take place in the High Court on February 19 and 20.

He granted Reform's request for an interim order prohibiting the government from making any statutory orders which would change the date of the forthcoming elections.

Reform's contention was that an order was needed now, ahead of the hearings in February, because if the government did indicate it planned cancellations, they would have the likely effect of discouraging candidates from coming forward and/or participating, stymie the selection of candidates and undermine the conduct of local election campaigns. 

Ahead of Mr Justice Chamberlain's ruling a spokesperson for Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said the department was taking "a locally-led approach" to the decision.

They added: "Councils are in the best position to judge the impact of postponements on their area, and this government will listen to them.

"These are exceptional circumstances where councils have told us they're struggling to prepare for resource-intensive elections to councils that will shortly be abolished, while also reorganising into more efficient authorities that can better serve local residents.

"This is an ongoing process, and no decisions have been made yet over any delays. There is a clear precedent for postponing local elections where local government reorganisation is in progress, as happened between 2019 and 2021."

However, they now must set any decision-making aside until next month.

Reform leader Nigel Farage welcomed the judge's decision, saying: "Labour are terrified because they know Reform would win."

Polls last week suggested Reform would storm to victory in the councils that have delayed their elections, coming first with 28.3% of the vote to the Tories'  20.7% and Labour's 17.4%.

This morning (Wednesday, 21 January) Labour minister Darren Jones insisted it would be too 'costly' for the votes to go ahead, amid a major restructuring of local councils.

The leader of Reform in Thurrock. Cllr Alex Anderson, says he believes that the electorate's rights will prevail, saying: "It's only right that the government recognise the damage this is doing to democracy in Thurrock and let the people vote."