Opinion: A Council Tax Freeze Won’t Save Labour in Hartlepool — And Keir Starmer’s Future May Be About to Fall With It....

Locals are expected to be told that the Labour Held Hartlepool Borough Council will implement a Council Tax freeze for struggling households, a year after controversially Labour hiked bills, but will it be enough to save them from electoral defeat in May's Local Elections ?

2nd November 2025

The Labour held Hartlepool Borough Council are said to be preparing a last-ditch sweetener for voters in a bid to stave off electoral defeat in the run up to the May 2026 local council elections in the form of a council tax freeze for 2026 for struggling households. .

But while it may sound appealing to hard-pressed residents, the move is widely expected to blow a multi-million-pound hole in the council’s finances — with many believing it won’t be enough to save Labour from the political reckoning that's heading its way.

According to council finance officials, freezing the council tax bills for April 2026 could cost Hartlepool more than £3 million pounds in lost revenue, placing even further strain on already-stretched local services. Despite those warnings, Labour is said to be pushing ahead, clearly hoping the offer will shore up support before voters go to the polls in just seven months time.

Election Fear at Labour HQ

Hartlepool Borough Councils recently elected leader also happens to be the wife of Hartlepool Labour MP Jonathan Brash...

The announcement is expected to be waved through by Labour’s ruling group after first passing the councils Finance & Corporate Affairs Committee sometime in late November 2025. It will come just months before a crucial local elections are set to be held across the country in which Labour is expected to see a large number of Labour councillors face losing their seats — including the newly-elected council leader, who also happens to be the wife of Hartlepool’s Labour MP, Jonathan Brash.

Voters in Hartlepool are said to be restless & are itching to punish Labour at the ballot box in May 2026. Reform UK, despite concerns over its leanings towards the Conservatives is already said to be preparing to field a full slate of candidates, and insiders expect them to slash Labour’s majority or even seize Labour-held seats, reducing the ruling group to a razor-thin margin — or potentially forcing Labour out of power entirely.

Sources inside the Labour Party claim Labour councillors in Hartlepool feel the ground moving beneath them. The proposed Council Tax freeze is a political lifeline — one that looks more like desperation, rather than leadership.

Reform UK: Opportunity, but Internal Chaos is Holding them Back !

Some Reform Members are said to be 'unhappy' as to how the local branch is being run, as Reform HQ is reportedly forced to step in

But before Reform supporters start celebrating, it’s not all smooth sailing in their camp either.

Internal disputes are said to be splitting the party locally, with reports of increased friction following the sudden removal of interim chair Amanda Napper. Members were reportedly furious after a controversial former Conservative councillor — once filmed cheering a council tax rise — was welcomed into Reform without consulting the local membership.

That decision undermined Reform’s anti-establishment image and alienated older, loyal supporters. Insiders complain that Reform has been slow to organise both on the ground and online, leading to fears that the party risks squandering the historic opportunity put in front of it.

Reform may be leading in sentiment — but past elections in Hartlepool have shown that elections here are won by organisation, & not sentiment alone.

If Labour Falls in Hartlepool, Starmer Falls With It

Just like in 2021, after Labour was defeated in a By-election held in Hartlepool, Mr Starmer could be facing his political reckoning in the 2026 local elections

Make no mistake — Hartlepool isn’t just seeing another council election next May. It could also be the political earthquake that determines the future of the Labour Party nationally.

If Labour is punished by voters here, even if Reform doesn’t take outright control of Hartlepool Borough Council, the backlash from inside the party will be fierce. Keir Starmer’s leadership is already wobbling, with murmurs from restless backbenchers said growing louder by the week.

A humiliating result in Hartlepool — a town Labour once considered an unshakeable Labour stronghold— could be the moment the knives start to come out for Starmer. And for Reform UK, forcing Starmer from power may be almost as valuable as taking Hartlepool Borough Council itself.

A Freeze Today, a Storm Tomorrow

A council tax freeze might sound like a gift — but voters are likely to be asking the question as to Why Now ? & Why couldn't this have been done last year ? This isn’t smart governance by anyone's interpretation — it’s Labour running for political survival mode.

And it seems that in May 2026, Labour may very well be about to find that no amount of short-term bribery can stop the political storm that's building over this town.