Stephen Place sets out Reform UK’s three-part plan for Bradford

The new leader of Bradford Council has announced his three-part plan to tackle key challenges that the district faces as a new era in the local authority gets underway (it’s the first time that Labour or the Conservatives have been in charge).

In his first official address since the historic set of local elections, Reform UK’s Stephen Place listed these as one, opening up Bradford to business, two, targeting neglected communities and three, improving the community as a whole.

Place, one of three councillors for Royds, said that for any city to “survive in these times”, Bradford needs to be declared open for business.

“We are declaring it open for business,” he said. “So, if you are a business looking to locate somewhere which is vibrant and exciting with a big future, please get in touch.”

With overlooked and seriously deprived communities, which Place identified as being “right around the city centre” and some towns and villages, a partnership approach was put forward.

“[We will] look at how we can work with partners and community groups and town councils to best find a way forward that supports you with the essential services that you need to make sure that this is a thriving, bustling, happy city,” he said.

The final part of his plan was geared towards making sure that everyone in Bradford “lives happily together and works and develops and has a prosperous time”.

He said: “You need somewhere to bring up your children that's safe, clean, relatively crime-free, that can get a good education and hopefully find a suitable career for themselves, which keeps them in Bradford, because the more people that leave, that's the worst thing for Bradford.”

Place had opened up his address with an update on the grooming gang inquiry, revealing that he had written a letter to Anne Longfield, chair of the Independent Inquiry into Grooming Gangs and a local resident. He explained that this was one of the first things he did as leader.

“They're looking at five specific areas in the country and Bradford has to be part of that,” he said. “The history of the grooming and gangs issue needs to be put to bed. The survivors of the grooming gangs need to have their voices heard and they need some closure.”

Place has previously claimed that if the district isn’t included in a national inquiry, that Reform UK in Bradford, if elected to power, would hold their own inquiry.

“Here's our pledge,” he said in a video posted online on 5 May. “If Reform, on Thursday, are voted into power … we will hold a fully funded open public inquiry, we will appoint a KC – King’s Counsel – to oversee that inquiry and all the survivors and all the bodies that are involved in this thing will get their voices heard.”

When asked by an ITV journalist if this is something he can still do and afford now that he has been elected, Place said that it “depends on the cost … we’d have to cap it and look at what’s involved but we’ll do our best”.

He also touched on the cultural side of Bradford, which, following the generally positive impact of the year-long City of Culture celebrations, is now seen as a critical component in growing the local economy (it’s one of the four main drivers of the former administration’s Built Different plan).

Place said he was looking at the feasibility of bringing back Bingley Music Live, he welcomed the return of Bradford City Mela this summer and waxed lyrical about Saltaire Festival.

Bradford Council’s new leader now has to navigate the challenges of being in charge of a minority administration that has no chairs or deputy chairs on any of the main committees.

Reform UK, which is the largest group on the council, currently has 28 councillors, down from 29, after Daniel Devaney was banished from the party following revelations about some of his offensive social media posts (he currently sits as an independent after winning one of the seats for, though he was noticeably absent at the first meeting).

Place, too, has been criticised for his own offensive social media posts that have since been deleted (his accounts disappeared around about the 17 May when he appeared on BBC Politics North).

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Imran Khan, the new leader of the Labour group on Bradford Council – the previous leader and leader of the council, Susan Hinchcliffe, lost her seat at the bruising set of elections for the party – called for his suspension and resignation, saying that his “online conduct is incompatible with holding public office”.

The Greens have described his “sexist social media posts” as grubby, stated that they believe he isn’t fit for public office and asked whether “Reform take action against him or do they deem his apparent racist, sexist and Islamophobic social media history as acceptable”.

At the time of writing, there doesn’t appear to be specific and public comments from the Conservative group on Bradford Council in direct response to Place’s previous social media posts.

However, Rebecca Poulson, the leader of the group, did say after the annual meeting that “being prepared to work with another political group in instances where the outcome would be beneficial for Bradford District residents does not require us to be in a formal coalition nor required to support everything that they propose, including their choice of leader of council”.

Anna Dixon, the MP for Shipley, has spoken out, revealing that she has sent Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK nationally, a letter expressing her “serious concerns” about Place’s appointment.

She highlighted some of the posts that had been brought to her attention, including, as she described it, posts featuring “sexually explicit material” and posts “perpetuating hateful religious and racial discrimination”.

“Mr Place now represents your party as the Leader of Bradford Council, a district with one of the largest South Asian and Muslim populations in the country, many of whom will be deeply concerned by the views he has expressed,” Dixon went on to say.

“He also sits in our council chamber opposite many fantastic female representatives of their communities, who will be horrified by the sexually explicit nature of Mr Place’s social media activity.”

When asked by the ITV journalist what his response was to this, Place said: “This is nonsense from four or five years ago. I had a big open Facebook page, people put things on there, I put things on there. Did I police it? No, probably not properly. That's the end of it, as far as I'm concerned. This is about Bradford [and] my vision for Bradford. [It] doesn't make me a lesser person.”