It wasn’t a surprise when Reform UK’s latest scandal broke: one of its newly-elected councillors was suspended after suggesting she might defect to a Farage-aligned party.

In fact, if you’ve been following the rise of Reform UK, you’d be forgiven for wondering how anyone could have missed the signs.

The party’s internal turmoil, combined with the rhetoric it has embraced, is creating a perfect storm for extremist views and dubious figures to thrive.

Reform UK, which positioned itself as a populist alternative to the mainstream parties, has found itself in a cycle of scandal ever since its surge in local elections.

The latest councillor suspension is just one example of a broader issue that’s been bubbling beneath the surface.

Of the 677 new councillors elected by Reform UK, a troubling number have faced removal or disciplinary action due to offensive remarks, extremist beliefs, and association with conspiracy theories. This isn’t an isolated incident—it’s a pattern.

In fact, this isn’t just about a handful of rogue individuals.

Reform UK’s policies themselves seem to act as a magnet for this kind of controversial and often dangerous rhetoric.

The party has capitalized on disillusionment with the status quo, offering solutions that tap into the fears and frustrations of a certain segment of the population.

But in doing so, it has opened the door for figures with far-right views, conspiracy theorists, and vocal anti-immigration extremists to find a home within its ranks.

The party’s hardline stance on immigration, a focus on Euroscepticism without clear alternative policies, and its embrace of populist language have all acted as a siren call for individuals whose views are far from mainstream.

From the council candidate who suggested “gunfire” against migrant boats to those who’ve been linked to online hate speech or extremist groups, Reform UK has quickly become a haven for those pushing the boundaries of acceptable discourse.

At its core, Reform UK’s platform isn’t just about pushing for change; it’s about creating an environment that, intentionally or not, makes extremism feel welcome.

The policies are divisive, their rhetoric inflammatory, and the result is a party that increasingly attracts individuals with dangerous, fringe beliefs.

And it’s not just the candidates that are problematic—the leadership’s attempts to address these issues often feel half-hearted, too little, and too late.

Supporters of Reform UK might argue that these are isolated incidents or that the party is simply a victim of its own growing pains.

But it’s becoming increasingly clear that the issue runs deeper than that. The policies themselves are inherently unsafe because they provide a platform for ideas that marginalize and polarize communities, rather than unite them.

When a party’s core beliefs are built on fear and exclusion, it’s inevitable that individuals with far-right leanings will be drawn to it.

If Reform UK truly wants to clean up its image and become a party that appeals to a broad cross-section of society, it needs to do more than suspend the occasional rogue candidate.

It needs to rethink the foundation of its policies and reconsider the type of message it’s sending to the public.

As long as Reform UK continues to embrace divisive, exclusionary rhetoric, it will continue to attract the kind of dangerous voices that have already caused irreparable harm to its reputation.

In the end, the question isn’t whether we should have seen this coming—it’s how much longer we’ll allow this kind of toxic politics to dominate the discourse.