Reform UK Hartlepool "On a Path to Self Destruct" as whistle-blower comes forward....

Anonymous Source, who approached the Teesside & Durham Post claims Reform UK in Hartlepool "is verging on a path of Self Destruction", as internal struggles over the parties direction grow.

27th August 2025

Reform UK Hartlepool is said to be "in open turmoil", with claims of leadership disputes, growing discontent among members, and looming boycotts now said to be threatening the party’s credibility in the town. What was once seen as a growing alternative to the Conservatives and Labour its claimed is now splintering under the weight of its own internal politics.

Leadership Crisis and AGM Delays

At the centre of the unrest is its Chairman Amanda Napper, whose position has reportedly been branded as “unelected” by critics within the branch. Members are said to have repeatedly called for an Annual General Meeting (AGM) to properly elect a new committee, yet its claimed Napper, who recently won a crucial by-election in Hartlepool securing Reform UK its first ever seat for the town allegedly 'stalling' the process at every opportunity.

Despite new branch rules reportedly being available since mid-July, Napper is said to have relied on the claims of a veto power from The Regional Coordinator and Westminster hopeful Neil McCabe to delay elections. This move has been widely interpreted as a deliberate tactic to cling to power, sowing distrust among its grassroots members who feel increasingly silenced and side-lined.

Suspicions Over Conservative Influence

Its been claimed Reform is actively recruiting more Conservative Councillors to defect from Hartlepool Borough Council

Frustrations have also reportedly deepened amidst suspicions that Conservative councillors are being quietly integrated into the branch to inflate its numbers and project an image of success to Reform UK’s national leadership. Critics argue this undermines the party’s claim to represent a genuine alternative to the Conservative establishment, suggesting that the branch risks becoming nothing more than a recycled haven for disaffected Tories rather than a fresh political movement which locals are seeking. .The latest flashpoint is said to have been the announcement of a branch meeting on Wednesday the 27th, reportedly called with just two days’ notice and accompanied by a restrictive agenda. The move has sparked fury among Reform members, many of whom are now said to be planning boycotts and have escalated their grievances directly to Reform UK headquarters.

Adding fuel to the fire, its claimed a Special General Meeting (SGM) has also been tabled, intensifying anger over what is seen as a leadership unwilling to listen to its own grassroots base.

Factionalism and Power Plays

Mike Youngs move to Reform from the Conservatives given his controversial history has not sat well with its members

Behind the scenes, further tensions are said to be swirling around Mike Young, a Conservative defector who's been accused of acting independently outside the Hartlepool branch’s authority.

Sources suggest Young's manoeuvring himself to unseat Napper, seeking to install his allies in her place in a bid to secure a further term as councillor for Hartlepool's Rural West Ward in 2026.

This escalating battle for control has left many members disillusioned & questioning whether Reform UK in Hartlepool is truly capable of offering a credible alternative to the status quo, or whether it's doomed to replicate the same internal squabbling and self-preservation that voters have come to expect from the established parties.

A Party literally at War with Itself

There's fears Reform Hartlepool is likely to collapse unless its political infighting can be resolved.

The Hartlepool branch of Reform UK is now at a crossroads. With members disengaging, boycotting meetings, and appealing for outside intervention, the party’s local credibility is at stake. What should have been an opportunity to build momentum in a town disillusioned with both Labour and the Conservatives is instead descending into an internal civil war.

Unless the leadership issues are resolved swiftly and transparently, Reform UK risks not only losing its foothold in Hartlepool but also confirming critics’ suspicions that it is just another party mired in the same old politics.