Sheffield Reform leader says his party is not racist as councillors 'unify' after controversial few weeks
“I have got a track record of fighting racism and I don’t want to be the party that’s racist”
The new leader of Sheffield’s branch of Reform UK has said his councillors are “more determined” now as he hits back at racism controversy.
Despite making massive gains in the May local elections, Reform have faced controversy in Sheffield.
One of their councillors, Nathaniel Menday, was suspended only six days after the elections over deleted social media posts in which he described the UK as having a “subhuman underclass.”
Less than a week later, Shiregreen and Brightside councillor Mick Lee announced he was resigning from the party due to disagreements during Reform’s leadership election.
Now, Sheffield Reform councillors group leader John Hesketh - who previously served as a Liberal Democrat councillor and took over leadership on Friday (May 15) - has told The Star that he “refutes that there is a pattern here,” claiming Reform has no more problems than any other party.
“I don’t think it’s a Reform situation, I think it’s just bad luck,” he added.
He went on to say: “We have learnt a lesson from this, but it’s a lesson we have learnt for other parties too.”
Coun Hesketh said that political parties across the board “don’t have the resources” to carry out extensive research through every candidate’s digital footprint, as social media presents new problems in the vetting process.
However, he clarified that when he was informed about Coun Menday’s online history on the day of the election count (May 8), he asked for an explanation and reported the matter to Reform UK.
In April, the Times reported that Coun Menday had described Nazi architects as “real visionaries”, with deputy leader of Reform Richard Tice saying at the time that “decisions will be made” if he was elected.
Ultimately, coun Menday was suspended on Wednesday, May 13 - the same day The Star’s exposed his deleted social media account, which featured Nazi imagery like the swastika and posts praising dictatorships.
Coun Hekseth said he’s “proud of” his history of fighting racism, mentioning how he was involved in union movements to improve equality and studied a Masters degree where he focused on inequalities in employment legislation.
He said that his focus was always on “bread and butter things” like pay inequalities and access to maternity leave for female workers, rather than “the type of fighting racism which is typified in the modern Labour party.”
“I have got a track record of fighting racism and I don’t want to be the party that’s racist,” he continued.
“Until Menday I have never met anyone who is racist in Reform.”
He went on to say that both Coun Menday and Coun Lee should resign from the council, rather than continuing to serve as independents.
While his first few weeks as leader of Sheffield’s Reform branch have not been the easiest, Coun Hesketh insisted that his fellow councillors are ready to face the challenges that come their way - particularly when it comes to opposing plans to build homes on the greenbelt.
“The people who have been left have been galvanised by all this - they have really unified,” he said.
“They are more determined than they were before.”
He described the remaining councillors as hard workers, adding: “It’s a pleasure to lead them, to be honest.”