Nigel Farage is facing a fightback from council staff over Reform UK‘s bid to cut public spending. The insurgent party has set up a “UK Doge”, spearheaded by former chairman Zia Yusuf, based on the US Department of Government Efficiency which was led by tech billionaire Elon Musk.

But unions have reported a surge in membership in town halls run by Reform. Unison said it saw an average jump in new members of 167% between the week before the local elections and the one after the polls closed across the 10 Reform UK-controlled councils.

Zia Yusuf is leading Reform’s UK Doge (Image: Getty)

There was an increase of 205% between the average weekly number of joiners in the previous weeks of 2025 and the week after the polls closed.

General secretary Christina McAnea said: “A party that’s voted consistently against modest measures to improve working conditions and threatened to sack council staff at the earliest opportunity doesn’t give confidence to working people.

“Reform has been keen to shout about its tax and benefits giveaways, but there’s precious little on which cherished public services will be sacrificed to pay for them.”

The biggest increase (1,320%) was in Durham where Reform leader Nigel Farage specifically told council staff to start looking for new jobs.

It comes after GMB said membership had soared in Reform-run local authorities since May’s elections.

Councils where the union has seen an increase in membership include Durham, Lancashire, Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Nottinghamshire and Doncaster.

GMB national officer Rachel Harrison said: “Reform spouts a lot of nonsense about being on the side of workers, but these figures show people aren’t buying it.

“Workers in Reform-led councils are flocking to join unions because they know the first thing Farage and his cronies will do is attack low-paid staff’s terms and conditions.”