During the 2025 local elections, Reform UK campaigned for the introduction of a “DOGE for every local authority” – a special unit modelled on billionaire Elon Musk’s “Department of Government Efficiency” in U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration.
Party leader Nigel Farage said his “Department of Local Government Efficiency” (DOLGE) would make sweeping cuts in “fat and lazy” councils “taking the taxpayer for mugs” by wasting money on, among other items, “diversity agendas” and “climate change”.
A year on, Reform now has control of 24 local authorities, after winning another 14 in last week’s (7 May) local elections.
What can these councils expect, based on Reform’s past 12 months in local government, and how will this affect climate policies?
Edward de Quay, a policy analyst at the London School of Economics’ Grantham Institute, gave an indication. “We now know what to expect from a Reform run local authority on net zero and climate change,” he told DeSmog.
