“I think there's a lot gone wrong with politics, not just in Kent”

What we asked Linden Kemkaran, the new Reform leader of Kent County Council

In May, Reform swept to power at Kent County Council, taking 57 of 81 seats. Linden Kemkaran emerged as their new leader from that group. We met her at County Hall to discuss her experiences as the child of the Windrush generation, why she joined and left the Conservative Party, Brexit, running the UK’s largest local council, and lots more.

Kent County Council leader Linden Kemkaran

How did you come to be leader of the Reform group?
I can't speak for anybody else, but obviously we won a heck of a lot of seats on May the 1st, and I still remember that moment sitting in the count. I'd won my seat. I was very happy about that. I thought, I'm a councillor, this is amazing. What a great opportunity, what an honour, what a privilege. Then it flashed up on my phone that Reform had suddenly won control of Kent County Council.
Bear in mind, I only knew a handful of people I'd been campaigning with in and around Maidstone and this bit of Kent. Anybody else, I had no idea who they were, and suddenly we've got 57 councillors. We were now a group. Then, of course, we had control, and we knew we'd have to elect a leader. The next morning after the count, Saturday morning, we all met in a hotel in Maidstone, in a room that was far too small, because I don't think the person that booked it ever thought we'd get 57. We're all crammed in a tiny room, just trying to get to know each other. We were told we had to elect a leader there and then.
I think from memory, there was a moment where people stood up and said, ‘Well, I'd like to be considered,’ and they gave a little pitch. I was one of them because I thought, well, why not? Someone's got to be the leader. Then we were launched into this very intense week of a leadership campaign, knowing that on the Thursday night, we would have to elect our group leader. That was very intense. It involved a lot of phone calls, a lot of going around to meet people, basically to sound people out and work out where the support was going to go. I think there were five of us on the night of the actual leadership election, here in Sessions House, and I won. I got the most votes out of everybody.

Why do you think you get the most votes?
I presume that my fellow members thought I would be the best person to get started straight away because of my media experience. I think they knew that the media pressure was intense from day one. Before day one, it was absolutely intense. I think everybody realised there'd be no time to find your feet. You would win, and then you'd be wheeled straight out to face the media, and that's exactly what happened. Maybe there was that feeling that because I had the experience of having been a broadcast journalist, I would be very well placed to be able to give interviews straight away without having to undergo weeks of media training. Maybe I was able to sell them a vision of the direction I wanted to take Kent County Council in. Maybe it was because I stressed about the stakes being so high here for us in Kent that now we were in control of this council, we were effectively the shop window through which the electorate was going to be looking to see if they could trust a Reform government in a few years' time. Maybe it was a combination of those factors. Maybe I just did a good speech on the night, and I carried the crowd with me, as can sometimes happen.

You then had to pick from a group of strangers who could make the best cabinet. Was there any particular process you went through with that?
It was probably the most difficult thing I've ever attempted, and I've done a few difficult things in my time. I selected the deputy leader straight away, because this was somebody I'd identified, having got to know Brian Collins. I thought he would be very good in lots of ways. We're complementary in our style, but different. I thought I need someone who's not a clone of me. I need someone who's going to bring a different viewpoint to the table. That was good. I got him in place.
I started asking all the members to email me if they would like to be considered for cabinet or deputy cabinet. I said, tell me who you are, what makes you tick, what your experience is, basically send me a mini-CV. I had so many replies. That was the most amazing thing. I knew then I was leading a group of committed, enthusiastic, talented individuals. But then it was trying to sift through and work out, sitting down with Brian and saying, well, this person says they'd like this, but I think this person might be a better fit. Then it was a case of trying to get as many people up to see us as we could, doing mini-interviews, and just trying to thrash out who we thought we could slot into which role. All the appointments were made on the understanding that there might be a reshuffle because, naturally, I didn't know the people, they didn't know me, I didn't know if it's going to work. I would say we've been probably 95% successful, which I think is pretty good considering the timescale we were operating within and the ridiculousness of the situation.

If we can just take a moment to reflect on that 5%, there was a member of the cabinet who has recently been replaced. Why was that needed?
What I've had to do with every single cabinet member, they all know they're being reviewed all the time. Obviously, I'm watching them in meetings, I'm getting them in for one-to-ones, I'm evaluating, working out how it's going. It's not just about how they're doing the job. Is that person really going to thrive in that role? Sometimes you have to make very tough decisions early on, and I think it's always better if you can address something early on. I think that's good management. The worst thing you can do to somebody is keep them in a role where they're clearly not going to thrive. That is actually bad management. I knew straight away that I would have to make tough decisions, and luckily, I'm not afraid to make tough decisions.

There is another member of the council who is no longer a member of the party. I won't ask you to comment on a current court case, but do you think they should stand down? Should there be a by-election?
Well, there are very odd laws in this country. Unless somebody is sent to prison for a certain number of days, weeks and months, there is nothing the party or anyone can do to stop that person being an elected representative. I think it's crazy. As you said, I cannot comment on an active court case, nor would I wish to. I think the law needs to be looked at by the government because I don't think it's a healthy position for anybody to be in.
Should this councillor resign?
I'm not going to comment on that case.

You are almost coming up to 100 days. What do you feel is your biggest achievement in that period of time?
I think our biggest achievement is giving a sense of direction to this place. I think when we came in as Reform UK, there were a lot of worried people inside and outside the building because the media portrays us as being neo-Nazis walking around with horns and a tail. It's appalling. The press we had, when we came in, I think there was a huge sigh of relief that everybody thought we were quite normal. ‘They happen to be Reform, but they essentially want the best for the residents of Kent.’
The second thing I think we've achieved is we found savings already. I appointed my Department of Local Government Efficiency, my DOLGE, on day one, and they have done fantastic work. Now, bearing in mind it's only been a hundred days, that's nothing when you look at the grand scheme of things and an organisation of size and sheer scale of KCC, they have done amazing work. While they've been getting to grips with their roles and undergoing all the essential training, they've still managed to find me already over £40 million worth of savings. That's a modest estimation of what they found me. There's much more to come, but what I'm not going to do is drip-feed things into the media or give you figures that I can't back up. Being a journalist, it's all about being able to back up what you say. I'm sure you'll appreciate that. I'll be releasing the information as and when it's ready to be released, and it's been fully costed, fully checked, substantiated. Then it will come out in full council as is right and proper.

Do you have any interaction with the opposition leaders within the council?
Far too much, far too much. They're great. I mean, bless them. I feel sorry for them because they have to sit there and look at all of us together, and we are very united. We are very strong as I think was evidenced in the last full council meeting. They tried to throw the usual words that the opposition try and throw, that we're racist and we're bigoted and we're xenophobic. It just bounces off, because we don't accept it. We know we're not. We know we're none of those things. I think it was a very significant show of strength in the last full council meeting. They tried all the usual tricks. Two of them stormed out of the chamber, which you might have seen, because they have no argument. They have no political argument. They've become so used to throwing insults at people like us over the years. Back then, it used to shut down the debate. If somebody called you a racist or an Islamophobe, you would scurry off feeling ashamed and probably be cancelled. I don't think that's working anymore because the people of Kent have spoken. They wanted Reform to be in charge because they wanted the changes that Reform are going to bring to this council. Whatever the opposition throw at us, it really doesn't matter. I feel sorry for them because they've never been in that position before. They've always held the power because they could use the words, but now it's the actions that are speaking and not the words.