Reform UK gains seats in North East Lincolnshire Council election

Reform UK councillor Oliver Freeston retained his seat in the Croft Baker Ward.

Freeston was the youngest elected councillor in 2018 at the age of 18 when he was standing for the Conservatives.

He defected to Reform UK in 2024 and stood as the party’s parliamentary candidate for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes, but came second.

Freeston said local people had voted for his party because they “felt forgotten about, they felt ignored”.

“They felt as if the political class didn’t properly understand the everyday problems that we face,” he added.

“But people like me, people like my colleagues who have stood, we understand it because we live it.”

Freeston said Reform UK would look to improve North East Lincolnshire by cutting council waste and supporting local businesses.