Reform UK looks poised to complete its first clampdown on diversity, equity and inclusion training, GB News has been told.
Durham County Council, which was swept up by a turquoise tsunami in last month’s Local Elections, is preparing to announce a major change to its councillor training programme in the coming days.
A local Reform UK source also suggested that the changes could be made as early as Monday.
Nigel Farage previously confirmed on May 6 that his new tranche of councillors will boycott diversity and climate change training.
Speaking after taking control of 10 councils across England, the Reform UK leader said: “Reform UK councillors are being instructed to take part in DEI and climate change training.
“Our new elected officials will do no such thing because we believe all people should be treated equally.”
Nigel Farage
PA
Darren Grimes and Nigel Farage
PA
They added: “Proper struggle session stuff designed to make normal people feel guilty for existing.”
Durham’s DEI training hit the headlines yet again this week after Reform’s county council deputy leader voiced his fury at alleged attempts to suspend him over his decision to boycott the sessions.
Ex-GB News star Darren Grimes told the People’s Channel: “I was elected to serve my constituents, not to attend political re-education camps.
“The idea that refusing DEI training could lead to sanctions shows how far our institutions have fallen.
Reform UK now controls Durham County Council
REFORM UK
Zia Yusuf has announced he will be re-joining in a new role PA
Meanwhile, Lincolnshire County Council was spending £11,500 to hold eight diversity courses.
Shortly after Reform UK swept up hundreds of wards on May 1, then-chairman Zia Yusuf also set out enforcing a strict flag policy of only displaying the Union Jack, St George’s cross and county flags.
Yusuf, who resigned as chairman last week before returning to the populist party just 48 hours later, also recently launched Reform’s “UK Doge” operation.
However, figures revealed by the Cabinet Office suggested that the actual amount spent by the civil service on DEI schemes in 2022/23 was just £27.1million.
Andrew Husband and Nigel Farage
REFORM UK
Advocates of DEI also believe that the training helps ensure that services and policies are relevant and effective for all community members.
Local Government Association guidance released last year stated: “As a councillor you encounter a variety of different people, groups, and organisations in a number of situations, so there will always be the potential for unconscious bias. You are likely to be representing a diverse community of people with different beliefs, social class, economic status, and age groups.
“In your community leadership roles of advocate, facilitator, and decision-maker you need to be fair, transparent, and objective, and to comply with the Equality Act 2010. This will not only benefit the community but also you as a councillor.”
Farage’s decision to speak out again DEI training separately sparked widespread condemnation from trade union chiefs.
Nigel Farage
PA
Unison general-secretary Christina McAnea, who is now leading a Protect DEI campaign, said: “We have laws that protect workers, and strong unions that will always stand up for their members.”
McAnea went on to urge public sector workers in newly Reform-run areas to join unions and access legal protections, framing the move as a “thinly veiled attempt to politicise and purge equality-focused roles”.
Legal experts have even warned councils remain bound by the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) – a statutory requirement enshrined in the Equality Act 2010.
The duty requires public bodies to eliminate unlawful discrimination, advance equality of opportunity, and foster good relations between different groups.
Professor Aisha James, an expert in public law at King’s College London, said: “This goes beyond party politics. The Equality Act isn’t optional.
“Any public body that seeks to undermine its duties under the guise of ‘efficiency’ or ‘ideology’ could find itself facing judicial review.”
