KCC Leader Plea for Support

The Reform UK leader of Kent County Council, Linden Kemkaren, has called on her own councillors to sign a message of support.

On advice from the party’s headquarters, she sent out a message this morning calling on her 49 remaining members to back her in writing.

The Liberal Democrat opposition at KCC say it's a sign of “increasing desperation” to shore up her position.

It came three days after Cllr Kemkaran’s leadership was rocked by a leaked video of a private virtual meeting where she was shown swearing and raising her voice in front of members.

In a message to members on Saturday evening, Cllr Kemkaran branded those who had leaked the video to a national newspaper as “cowards” who had committed an act of “treachery”.

It emerged on Sunday a back bencher was considering staging a vote of no confidence in the leader.

On Monday morning, the leadership suspended the whip from Paul Thomas (Maidstone South), Oliver Bradshaw (Maidstone Central), Maxine Fothergill (Sevenoaks Rural North East) and Bill Barrett (Ashford Rural South) on suspicion of leaking the video to the Guardian.

Reform UK swept into office in May having secured 57 of the 81 seats at County Hall, ending nearly 30 years of Tory dominance. Since May, seven have either had the whip suspended or left the party.

Today, Cllr Kemkaran sent this note to members just before 9am this morning: “To counter all the negativity, HQ would like a statement ready to issue in support of the leadership ideally signed by all members. “

This was followed by another message titled “In support of our Leadership”.

It reads: “We, the undersigned, believe in democracy and have full confidence in our leader, Cllr Linden Kemkaran.

“During the hustings and subsequent vote for a group leader on May 8, 2025, Linden won overwhelmingly because we could see that she was the best person for the job.

“Leading a large group of newly-elected county councillors was a huge task in itself. To also lead the largest and most complex authority in the country was an almost impossible task for one person to take on from a standing start.

“But Linden rose to the challenge without hesitation. She has the opposition firmly on the run and under her guidance, Reform UK members are flourishing in their roles.

“She is leading the group and the council with courage, integrity and discipline.”

It goes on to say how shocked the top table was to find an “enemy in our midst”.

The note claims that work over the weekend, since the original Guardian revelations, by Cllr Kemkaran, her deputy Brian Collins and whips Cllrs Maxwell Harrison, Sarah Emberson and Wayne Chapman had led to the suspension of the four councillors.

Liberal Democrat opposition deputy leader Cllr Richard Streatfeild said: “I don’t feel on the run. It looks like an act of increasing desperation because she is being told by Reform HQ to get members to back her or sack her. It looks more and more like it’s now outside the leader’s hands.”

A Reform back bencher confided: “There is a theory that the leadership is trying to gauge internal support if a vote of no confidence comes from the opposition benches.

“To be honest, I don’t feel as if I have much other choice but to sign it, even though I don’t want to. But it rather feels like the wagons are circling.”

In the video, Cllr Kemkaran threatens to mute Cllr Thomas who presses her on local government reorganisation policy.
He asks: “Is that the right leader and the right cabinet?”

During the discussion, Cllr Kemkaran tells colleagues: “You are just going to have to f****** suck it up.”

Yesterday at County Hall, Cllr Thomas confirmed he was under investigation but felt sure he would be exonerated while Cllr Fothergill fled County Hall in tears protesting her innocence.

The back bencher added: “If you look down the list of names, you wouldn’t think any of them are guilty and no one really apart from the leadership believes they are.

“It has started to create a bad feeling among members, that people are under suspicion even when they haven’t done anything.

“It has to be said that when you shut people out of decision making, you alienate them. Then when the leadership is in trouble, as it is now, they end up looking bunkered in.”

It emerged at the weekend a back bencher was considering gathering enough signatures to spark dismissal motion under section 14.43 of the KCC constitution.

Most observers feel such a vote would fall short, regardless of who it comes from, because of Reform’s numerical advantage.

Reform HQ insiders are convinced the number of disaffected members remains small.

Reform UK was approached for a comment.