Greens are alternative to Reform UK says Bucks councillor as party gains a member
The Green Party is an alternative to Reform UK, a Bucks councillor who kept his seat in the local elections has said.
Greg Smith was elected to represent Haddenham & Stone on Buckinghamshire Council during the May 1 vote.
He was previously the unitary authority’s only Green member, but has now been joined by Maru Mormina, who was also elected in his ward last week.
Cllr Smith said he was ‘pleased’ with the Greens’ performance in its target seats and across Buckinghamshire.
He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “Particularly in places where we have been talking to people who have been thinking about voting Reform because of their disillusionment with the two main parties.”
The councillor claimed people were more likely to vote Green than Reform once they were aware of the parties’ policies.
He added: “It was weird and unexpected on the doorstep. Reform voters are just ordinary people really. They are just a bit disillusioned.
“Actually, what they wanted is some sort of alternative and when you talk to them about what the Greens offer and what we know about Reform - funding from fossil fuel millionaires and all the rest - it was a really positive discussion and people quite quickly flipped.”
Nationally, the Greens won 79 seats on councils across the country last week, an increase of 44.
Cllr Smith said: “The key point is Green councillors being really active in their community and doing things in their community. That’s what really appealed to people in Haddenham & Stone.”