Cat Smith banned from speaking about Fairtrade at Lancashire County Council-hosted event

The authority is led by the party which claims it champions free speech - Reform UK

Hello and welcome to The Lancashire Lead.

Cat Smith was pulled from a Fairtrade event at County Hall next month - despite having spoken at it before - by Lancashire County Council itself.

The move, which Reform UK says it has absolutely no involvement in, took Smith by surprise. She said she understands the need for such events to not be political - but that she avoids talking politics when speaking with children, which would be the case at the event in question.

Smith was invited to the event by a Green councillor in Lancaster who also spends time volunteering for the Fairtrade charity.

Reform UK, as the party that champions free speech, will surely interject and ask that she is allowed to speak?

To mark the start of 2026, we are offering readers a two-month free trial of The Lancashire Lead. That means it’s easier than ever to stay properly informed about what’s happening where you live - and you get to support proper independent local journalism too. THERE IS JUST ONE WEEK LEFT TO CLAIM THIS OFFER. Join us here.

You can also support The Lancashire Lead by sharing this article.

Lancashire briefing

🩺 There are calls for the Reform UK group that runs Lancashire County Council to commit to keeping open five day centres for the elderly – after making the same pledge regarding some of the authority’s care homes. A total of 10 facilities were placed under review by County Hall in October last year because of the “significantly poor condition” of the buildings from which they operate. A final decision on the future of the services was not expected until the spring – but on Wednesday (21 January), the party said it would be investing in the five care homes, ensuring their “stability…for the years to come”. However, no mention was made of the day centres, three of which are co-located with care homes that now appear to have been secured.

🏠 Residents in Rossendale fear their houses and a hillside could become unstable thanks to activity linked to a potential housing site. People living at Bankside Lane, Bacup, said they are concerned about recent activity on land running downhill to Wesley Place. And Rossendale Council has now ordered a halt to any development activity in order to investigate possible breaches. Paul Moore, of Rockliffe House Farm, Wesley Place, has a basic type of planning permission to test the sloping land’s suitability for two possible homes behind Wesley Place. But some residents have questioned whether planning processes are being followed. Recent work criticised by those living nearby includes a ramp of stone chippings being laid from Bankside Lane down to the hillside, allowing a heavy vehicle to be driven down near a public footpath.

🗳️The leader of Chorley Council has defended asking for the borough’s local elections to be called off this year. The government agreed to the request from the Labour-run authority after giving all those councils that are due to be abolished in 2028 – and which also had what would be their last ever set of elections scheduled for this year – the opportunity to make the case for cancelling the votes.

They asked the councils to set out any concerns they had about having the capacity to manage both elections and the complex reorganisation process – demanded by the government itself – that is poised to begin. Against that backdrop, Chorley leader Alistair Bradley said that the electoral contest – which it was mathematically impossible for his ruling Labour group to lose, as only a third of the seats were up for grabs – would have been a “waste” of valuable time and resources. Reform UK, which has only one member on Chorley Council, last week published polling carried out on its behalf which suggested the party would have secured the largest share of the vote in the borough in May – 32 percent ahead of a predicted 24 percent for Labour.

---

Cat Smith banned from speaking about Fairtrade at Lancashire County Council-hosted event

Cat Smith at a Fairtrade event in 2024

By Luke Beardsworth

A Lancashire MP was effectively banned from talking to children about Fairtrade by the Reform UK-led Lancashire County Council.

Cat Smith, Labour MP for Lancaster and Wyre, was set to speak at the Lancashire Fairtrade Schools Conference on 10 February at County Hall - something she has done on a number of occasions before.

The Lancashire Lead understands that, despite political friction between Labour and Reform UK, she was genuinely shocked that the decision had been taken.

When approached by The Lancashire Lead in the first instance, Lancashire County Council declined to comment, saying they were not involved in the decision and said it was a matter for Fairtrade Lancashire.

When we showed them evidence that the MP had been informed Lancashire County Council had made the decision, they shifted approach.

That email, sent to Smith by Fairtrade Lancashire after Christmas and seen by The Lancashire Lead, said that the charity was afraid Lancashire County Council would rescind the use of County Hall if she was permitted to speak.

It reads: “I’m writing with disappointing news. While the group would have loved Cat to come along to the Schools conference, the Reform led Lancashire county council has requested that we rescind the invitation since the council are hosting us at county hall.

“They are not comfortable with a Labour MP speaking at the conference and we don’t want to risk losing the venue for this and future years.

“I’m so sorry about this after you were so accommodating to fit us into Cat’s schedule on 10 February, and hope it isn’t too much work to rearrange her day. I’m hoping we can work with Cat again in the future when the political climate is more friendly”

A spokesperson for Lancashire County Council told The Lancashire Lead in response: “As a county council, we are committed to delivering sustainable and accessible facilities and events that meet the needs of our communities.

“Officers highlighted to the Fairtrade group that the event should remain politically neutral and that should be reflected in the invite list. Beyond offering that guidance, we were not involved in organising or planning the event.”

Despite this, it is understood that County Cllr Alf Clempson, the Conservative chairman of the authority, will be allowed to attend due to his role being ‘ceremonial’. In addition to this, if any councillors wish to attend the event, they will be permitted to do so.