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Reform UK has launched a direct assault on local journalism and democratic accountability by banning the Nottingham Post, its online arm Nottinghamshire Live, and BBC-funded Local Democracy Reporters (LDRS) from engaging with Nottinghamshire County Council.
Council leader Mick Barton has ordered all 41 Reform councillors to cut off contact with these outlets, removing them from press distribution lists, refusing interviews, and barring them from council events.
The only exceptions will be emergencies such as flooding or incidents at council-run schools.
It means one of Nottinghamshire’s biggest news outlets has effectively been shut out of covering the activities of the county’s ruling party.
Why has this happened?
The roots of this ban go back to an embarrassing viral moment in June, when a Reform councillor gave a local interview that revealed they had only a loose grasp of their policy brief.
The clip was widely shared online, damaging Reform’s image.
Relations between Reform councillors and the press seemed to improve afterwards, but the situation deteriorated again when Nottinghamshire Live ran a story about proposed local government reorganisation.
The piece included reports of internal disagreements among Reform councillors. Barton reacted by cutting off access entirely.
In short: the ban was not about “bias” or “unfair reporting” — it was about Reform UK being embarrassed by legitimate scrutiny.
‘A massive attack on local democracy’
Natalie Fahy, editor of the Nottingham Post and Nottinghamshire Live, has called the move a dangerous precedent:
“It’s a massive attack on local democracy… You are going to get some negative press. What you don’t do is shut the shop up. This is a worrying sign of potentially things to come if Reform wins the next election.”
She is right. Every government – national and local – faces uncomfortable reporting. Mature politicians accept it as part of democracy. Only authoritarian politicians try to silence it.
Hypocrisy from the ‘party of free speech’
Opposition politicians have been quick to point out Reform UK’s hypocrisy. The party often claims to defend free speech and transparency, but in Nottinghamshire it has done the opposite.
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Labour MP Michael Payne accused Reform of “rank hypocrisy”: “Free speech and transparency only applies to everybody else and not to themselves.”
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Nadia Whittome, Labour MP for Nottingham East, said the move set a “chilling precedent” and revealed Reform’s “authoritarian colours.”
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The Liberal Democrats wrote to Nigel Farage, urging him to reverse the “dangerous and chilling” decision — warning it may even breach the local government code of conduct, which requires councillors to submit to scrutiny.
Meanwhile, Reform MP Lee Anderson has openly joined Barton’s boycott, showing that this is not just one local leader’s tantrum but a party-wide stance against accountability.
Why this matters beyond Nottinghamshire
This story is not just about one county council. It is a test case for how Reform UK might behave if it gains more power nationally.
If Reform can silence the local press in Nottinghamshire because it dislikes coverage, what would stop it doing the same to national media if it won a general election?
As Fahy warned, “What you’re seeing here in Nottinghamshire is probably a microcosm of how it will be across the whole of the UK if Nigel Farage becomes prime minister.”
Journalists are not here to make politicians look good. We exist to ask difficult questions, to expose incompetence and corruption, and to keep voters informed.
By banning reporters, Reform UK is not just trying to silence the press. It is silencing the people the press represents: the residents of Nottinghamshire who have a right to know what their council is doing with their money and in their name.
Vox Political‘s verdict
Reform UK’s ban is censorship, plain and simple.
It undermines free speech, democratic accountability, and the principle that politicians answer to the people.
This is not just a local spat.
It is a warning sign for the future of the UK itself.
If Reform treats scrutiny as an enemy to be crushed, then voters should ask themselves: what is this party trying to hide?
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Reform UK’s Nottinghamshire press ban attacks free speech and democracy
Share this post:
Reform UK has launched a direct assault on local journalism and democratic accountability by banning the Nottingham Post, its online arm Nottinghamshire Live, and BBC-funded Local Democracy Reporters (LDRS) from engaging with Nottinghamshire County Council.
Council leader Mick Barton has ordered all 41 Reform councillors to cut off contact with these outlets, removing them from press distribution lists, refusing interviews, and barring them from council events.
The only exceptions will be emergencies such as flooding or incidents at council-run schools.
It means one of Nottinghamshire’s biggest news outlets has effectively been shut out of covering the activities of the county’s ruling party.
Why has this happened?
The roots of this ban go back to an embarrassing viral moment in June, when a Reform councillor gave a local interview that revealed they had only a loose grasp of their policy brief.
The clip was widely shared online, damaging Reform’s image.
Relations between Reform councillors and the press seemed to improve afterwards, but the situation deteriorated again when Nottinghamshire Live ran a story about proposed local government reorganisation.
The piece included reports of internal disagreements among Reform councillors. Barton reacted by cutting off access entirely.
In short: the ban was not about “bias” or “unfair reporting” — it was about Reform UK being embarrassed by legitimate scrutiny.
‘A massive attack on local democracy’
Natalie Fahy, editor of the Nottingham Post and Nottinghamshire Live, has called the move a dangerous precedent:
She is right. Every government – national and local – faces uncomfortable reporting. Mature politicians accept it as part of democracy. Only authoritarian politicians try to silence it.
Hypocrisy from the ‘party of free speech’
Opposition politicians have been quick to point out Reform UK’s hypocrisy. The party often claims to defend free speech and transparency, but in Nottinghamshire it has done the opposite.
Labour MP Michael Payne accused Reform of “rank hypocrisy”: “Free speech and transparency only applies to everybody else and not to themselves.”
Nadia Whittome, Labour MP for Nottingham East, said the move set a “chilling precedent” and revealed Reform’s “authoritarian colours.”
The Liberal Democrats wrote to Nigel Farage, urging him to reverse the “dangerous and chilling” decision — warning it may even breach the local government code of conduct, which requires councillors to submit to scrutiny.
Meanwhile, Reform MP Lee Anderson has openly joined Barton’s boycott, showing that this is not just one local leader’s tantrum but a party-wide stance against accountability.
Why this matters beyond Nottinghamshire
This story is not just about one county council. It is a test case for how Reform UK might behave if it gains more power nationally.
If Reform can silence the local press in Nottinghamshire because it dislikes coverage, what would stop it doing the same to national media if it won a general election?
As Fahy warned, “What you’re seeing here in Nottinghamshire is probably a microcosm of how it will be across the whole of the UK if Nigel Farage becomes prime minister.”
Journalists are not here to make politicians look good. We exist to ask difficult questions, to expose incompetence and corruption, and to keep voters informed.
By banning reporters, Reform UK is not just trying to silence the press. It is silencing the people the press represents: the residents of Nottinghamshire who have a right to know what their council is doing with their money and in their name.
Vox Political‘s verdict
Reform UK’s ban is censorship, plain and simple.
It undermines free speech, democratic accountability, and the principle that politicians answer to the people.
This is not just a local spat.
It is a warning sign for the future of the UK itself.
If Reform treats scrutiny as an enemy to be crushed, then voters should ask themselves: what is this party trying to hide?
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