First councillor to quit Labour and join Reform UK is from Ashfield

Councillor Cathy Mason, who was a Labour councillor for the Carsic ward on Ashfield Council, has now switched to Reform UK, making her the third Reform councillor on the authority.

Cathy is the first Labour Councillor in the country to defect to Reform UK.

Lee Anderson MP said: “I suspect she will be the first of many.

“Like many others all over the country, Cathy has been let down by the Labour Party with their policies that are not helping people at all.”

The MP stated that although Cathy is the first Labour Councillor in the country to defect to Reform UK, he suspects she will not be the last.

He added: “Welcome to the people's army, Cathy.”

This move follows the defection of Underwood councillor Dawn Justice to Reform UK from the Conservatives in November 2024, along with former independent Coun Andy Gascoyne, who represents the Selston ward – who joined Reform UK in January 2025.

Responding to the news, a Labour Party spokesperson said: “It is disappointing to lose a member, but that pales into comparison to how her residents must be feeling.

“It is not even two years since they voted for their councillor on a Labour ticket, and now, without a choice, they have been lumbered with Reform.

“Rather than Nigel Farage and Lee Anderson’s plan to charge people for operations, Labour is investing into the NHS at record levels.

“Rather than shouting and screaming from the White Cliffs of Dover or on their well-paid TV shows, Labour is increasing deportations, with returns and removals at a six year high.

“The Government’s Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill is back in parliament and both Reform and the Tories have already said they will vote against it. It just shows they are all talk, seeking headlines not solutions.

“This Labour government will continue to act on behalf of the working people of Ashfield, and leave both Reform and the Tories to their soapboxes.”