Hello, Fellow Watfordians!

My name is Gary Ling and I am proud to have been appointed Spokesman for the ReformUK Party in the Watford constituency. Since the misguided politically correct are corrupting the English language in the name of wokery, if you are unhappy with the 'man' bit, I am happy to be called 'Spokey. Visit www.ReformUKWatford.net to find out more about me.

In my world, other than spiritual matters, the happiness and vibrancy of the community in which I live are most important to me. This is why politics matters. Watford is a great place to live. Just a few years ago, for example, government data showed that almost 90% of people aged 50 to 64 were in work here. The highest employment rate for that age group in Britain. With the crushing burden of Tory taxes, the disincentive built into the benefits system and the lack of trust in Government and institutions, those numbers today are a pipe dream.

The core message of Reform UK in Watford about the current state of UK politics is: 'We Can't Go On Like This'. The UK's two- party system at a national level is broken and has become unworkable. The Tory Party is too broad a church and has become ungovernable. How can one party accommodate the Liberal Democrat politics of Theresa May and the Libertarian policies of Liz Truss? How can another main party accommodate the revolutionary socialist politics of supporters of Jeremy Corbyn and the corporatist politics of Kier Starmer? The behind-locked-doors ructions in the Conservative Government and the Labour Party should be out in the open, as part of transparent coalition talks, with parliamentarians elected under proportional representation.

We are over-governed. Key UK institutions need reform. Undemocratic House of Lords, too many Members of Parliament, in Watford too many local councillors and a UK civil service too woke to be operationally effective and not fit for purpose. We need to change things up. On the Watford Borough Council, the Liberal Democrats have a crushing majority and like the two big parties at Westminster, control the future of all of us in closed party meetings. Their arrogance is such that in Park Ward the LibDem councillor claimed allowances of £7,554.96 without attending one full Council Meeting since May 2022. In this local election, Reform UK candidates offer an alternative choice. When elected, none of our candidates will face a party whip. They will always act in the interests of their residents, not their Party's. Reform UK Watford wants to reduce the number of Borough Councillors from THREE per ward to TWO. We want to scrap the elected Mayor position when the Council already has a highly-paid Chief Executive, saving hundreds of thousands of pounds in salary, pension, and office costs over a four-year term.

We offer a different way of doing things. Think out of the box on election day and lend your vote to Reform UK Watford.