Reform UK deputy leader plans tribunal after being suspended in previous role

PLUS: Fracking fizzing back into the national agenda is not good news for Lancashire

Hello and welcome to The Lancashire Lead.

An employment tribunal happens when someone feels like their exit from a job was unfair. That can be because they were dismissed - or because they felt like they had no choice but to resign.

Today’s story is a case of the latter. Reform UK’s deputy leader Cllr Simon Evans was suspended from his full-time Sefton Council role on what says are ‘trumped up charges’, The Lancashire Lead has learned, before resigning once elected as a candidate for Nigel Farage’s party.

He firmly believes it is his political affiliation with Reform UK that has led to the situation - something Sefton Council denies firmly.

And with fracking rearing its head on the national stage again, I’ve looked at why that’s not good news for Lancashire.

Reform UK deputy leader to battle Sefton Council after resigning from role

Cllr Simon Evans

By Jamie Lopez

The deputy leader of Lancashire County Council has vowed to take Sefton Council to an employment tribunal, believing he was forced out for his political beliefs.

County Councillor Simon Evans, who was elected as a Reform councillor for Skelmersdale Central in May, previously worked as Sefton’s anti-social behaviour manager until quitting the authority soon after the election.

He spent ten years working for the local authority but says he was effectively forced out from the role as a result of his political beliefs and claims to have been suspended for three months and given a written warning over “some trumped up charges”.

Sefton Council declined to comment in detail but said it rejected the allegations and is prepared to defend itself against any potential claim.

Cllr Evans is now hoping to raise £1,500 for his initial legal fees with an ultimate goal of £50,000 to take the matter to a tribunal. At the time of writing, he had received four donations totalling £220, including from a ‘Nigel’ and a ‘Richard’.

In his explanation, Cllr Evans says he was forced to quit due to his association with Reform UK and that he had previously been reprimanded for wearing a T-shirt with the party logo while on a video meeting as he worked from home. He says a similar attitude was not applied to other people wearing different political messages while working for the council.

He wrote: “During the 2024 general election, I stood for Reform UK in West Lancashire. When I came back to work in July, I was suspended for three months and investigated for seven on some trumped up charges, then issued with a written warning but I completely deny any wrongdoing. I believe that this was simply to make my life as unpleasant as possible to make me leave, all because I stood for Reform UK - the process was the punishment.

“In May 2025, I was elected councillor for Skelmersdale. Two weeks later, it was clear to me that I was simply not wanted at the council because I was a Reform UK councillor. So I sent an email to senior management enquiring about how to end my time as amicably as possible. Immediately, I was sent an aggressive email telling me that I needed to confirm whether or not this was my last day. I was so shocked by this treatment that I decided that because of my beliefs I was simply not wanted and so forced to resign.”

Cllr Evans further claims that an elected Labour councillor said “O here he is, f**king Reform, turn coat, we all heard about you” upon seeing him when he returned his equipment and that he was told his social media account had been “spied on” by the council.

In his request for support, Cllr Evans says he is now unemployed and only able to support his family with money received in his elected roles. As deputy leader of Lancashire County Council, he receives annual allowances of £44,000.

A spokesperson for Sefton Council said: “We are aware of the claims and we strongly refute them. If a case is brought then we will defend the matters in full.”

The Lancashire Lead contacted Cllr Evans who declined to comment further saying that he wanted to keep the matter private ahead of any potential proceedings.

Fracking as part of the Labour vs Reform culture war is bad news for Lancashire

Analysis by Luke Beardsworth

Lancashire appears to be in something of a fracking stalemate in a revival of a drama we all thought had been put to bed.