Northeast Reform UK Councillor Removed After Six-Month Absence

A former Reform UK councillor has lost his place on Northumberland County Council after failing to attend an official meeting for six consecutive months.

John Allen had represented Hirst, an electoral division in Ashington, around 18 miles north of Newcastle. He continued serving without a party affiliation after being expelled from Reform UK in 2025.

His departure creates a vacancy on the 69-seat county council and means voters in Hirst will return to the polls. The result could influence the political balance of an authority responsible for services across a large part of the region surrounding Newcastle.

Six-month absence triggers vacancy.

Ashington Town Council confirmed that Allen’s last recorded council attendance was on 18 February 2026. It said the vacancy arose because he had not attended a meeting of Northumberland County Council, its committees or its subcommittees for six consecutive months.

Under Section 85 of the Local Government Act 1972, a council member who fails to attend qualifying meetings for six months can cease to hold office unless the absence was approved before the deadline expired.

Northumberland County Council formally declared the Hirst vacancy under Section 86 of the same legislation. Allen’s profile has also been removed from the council website.

The council said a by-election must be held within 35 working days of the vacancy being declared, with weekends and bank holidays excluded from that calculation. Electoral officials are responsible for confirming the final polling date and publishing nomination details.

Allen previously expelled from Reform UK.

Allen was removed from Reform UK following an internal investigation into his conduct. That investigation followed allegations from campaign group Hope Not Hate concerning comments reportedly posted online.

Among the allegations was a claim that Allen had written about wanting to shoot Sir Keir Starmer, who was prime minister at the time. Allen did not publicly respond to the allegations, and efforts reported by the original news source to contact him were unsuccessful.

Following his expulsion, he remained a county councillor without a party affiliation until the six-month attendance rule took effect.

Vacancy adds to changing council numbers.

The Hirst contest comes during a period of considerable political movement at County Hall. All 69 Northumberland County Council seats were contested in May 2025, with 35 required for a working majority.

Official election results showed that the Conservatives won 26 seats at that election, while Reform UK secured 23 and became the official opposition. Later changes, including a Conservative by-election gain, defections, expulsions, a resignation and the death of a councillor, subsequently altered those figures.

The Conservatives were reported to hold 28 seats immediately before the latest vacancy, while Reform UK had fallen to 18. No single political group therefore held the 35 seats needed for an overall majority.

Although Hirst lies outside Newcastle City Council’s boundary, the result will attract attention across the wider North East. Political developments in Northumberland can affect regional cooperation on transport, housing, employment and investment, including projects connected to Newcastle and the North East Combined Authority.

Hirst voters prepare for another election.

Candidates and polling arrangements will be published through the council’s formal election notices. Residents should check official information for registration deadlines, postal voting arrangements and the location of their polling station.

The result will determine who represents Hirst for the remainder of the current council term. It will also offer another indication of voter support for the major parties in communities north of Newcastle following the dramatic changes seen at the 2025 local elections.

Share your thoughts.

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