A Hampshire County Councillor has joined Reform UK after “many sleepless night” and blamed cuts in local government as being “beyond a joke”.

Lymington councillor Barry Dunning, who sits on Hampshire County Council  and New Forest District Council, defected to Reform UK from the Conservative party today describing it as his “freedom day”.

Cllr Dunning said his politics no longer aligns with the Conservative parties and said it had moved “very much to the left”.   

He said he is “fed up” with the party’s treatment of the past five ousted prime ministers and said it was to the detriment of the party.  

The lack of funding for local government from past Labour and Conservative governments has been a reason to drive the change. 

Cllr Dunning said: “As a councillor I am at the coal face.

“We are the people doing all the cuts and turning residents down for grants, not getting potholes fixed and social services have been piling up and up and up.

“It gets beyond a joke when you have no money to do anything.  

“I didn’t join to take part in politics to start cutting funds and services to our residents.

“That’s why I am voting Reform because they are going to start funding local government and provide the things our residents need.”  

Cllr Dunning has been campaigning against parking restrictions on Lymington High Street, introduced as a pilot scheme for four-and-a-half years.   

He said the parking scheme was introduced by the county council and intended to be rolled out to local areas like Milton, Hythe and Romsey but was not.

Instead, Lymington has seen the closure of 27 shops because of parking restrictions, cllr Dunning said.

While HCC made £60,000 in parking fees it’s a “drop in the ocean” compared to the money lost in business rates and the loss of “at least 50 jobs”, he said. 

Cllr Dunning told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “It is a day of freedom to speak my mind.

“There have been many sleepless nights and a lot of heart searching. I will be working hard for Reform.”  

He added his constituents have urged him to join the Reform party because they have already joined Reform.   

Welcoming him, a spokesperson for Reform UK said: “We’re delighted to have Barry on board.

“We welcome anyone who shares our vision for integrity, accountability, and meaningful change to join us.”    

The trend of defections to Reform UK is one the party believes will continue to grow, which it says underscores the urgent need for real change in our political system, both locally and nationally.