Dan Harrison, the Reform UK leader of Leicestershire County Council, has resigned from his position following the public release of recorded comments he made regarding staff redundancies.
Harrison announced his departure on Monday, ending his tenure in the role he assumed in May 2025. According to BBC News, he made the decision after consulting with senior figures within Reform UK, with deputy council leader Kevin Crook assuming the position of acting leader.
The resignation follows Harrison's apology for remarks captured on a recording in which he described 76 council solicitors as "incompetent" and stated they would face redundancy. In the same recording, he then shifted focus by saying "what I want to look at now is the women", comments that were subsequently shared across social media platforms.
Context within Reform UK leadership
Harrison's departure adds to a pattern of recent departures among Reform UK's senior figures. Reform UK's Welsh leader Dan Thomas resigned in September 2026 following his arrest on suspicion of assault and controlling or coercive behaviour. Additionally, Reform councillor Alan Feeney resigned from his positions on Solihull and Birmingham councils in October 2026 after being filmed making racist remarks about Asian homeowners.
The party has also faced other disciplinary matters involving its members. A Kirklees councillor was suspended over resurfaced social media posts from 2019 before being reinstated with a final written warning.
