A regional news website has recruited a council insider to write an anonymous column after Reform UK took control of its county.

Kent Online has started publishing a column written by ‘The KCC Insider’ after Nigel Farage’s party took overall control of Kent County Council in May.

The new columnist is described as “a well-placed County Hall employee writing for Kent Online – to give the inside story of what’s going on, offering context, gossip, and opinion…”

In their first column, the Insider discussed Reform’s so-called “Doge Unit”, based on the Trump Administration’s Department of Government Efficiency, as well as colleagues’ fears about being barred from working remotely.

They wrote: “So, welcome the whizkids with their laptops who are going to sort everything out with a few taps on their keyboards.

“Reform UK’s Doge (Department for Government Efficiency) squad arrived at County Hall last week in the shape of the party’s chairman, Zia Yusuf, businessman Aaron Banks, and tech entrepreneur Nathaniel Fried.

“A few days later, Yusuf and Fried quit the party, before changing their minds and rejoining at the weekend. So far, so not very efficient…

“But KCC staffers’ woes started back at the beginning of May when a fresh from victory Nigel Farage told public sector workers in Reform-run councils the days of working from home (WFH) were over.

“It really is hard to fully explain just how much that comment worried thousands of people around the UK who work for local authorities, not forgetting their relatives too.

“Here in Kent, KCC employs around 8,000 full-time workers, a high percentage of them women, who also have childcare and elderly parent-care responsibilities to juggle alongside their jobs.

“Flexible working is a legal right and, to be honest, a godsend for a great many people who would have to find alternative employment if in-office working became compulsory again – something which would also require a change in the law, not just a decree from Mr Farage.

“There is a lazy and offensive stereotype that council staff are all sat at home watching daytime TV, out of sight of managers who themselves might be hanging about in County Hall, or languishing at home too, waiting for their gold-plated public sector pensions to kick in.

“You won’t be surprised to hear that I think this is total nonsense. I probably work harder at home than when I had to go into the office. Yes, I am able to manage my work around personal responsibilities, but you’ll honestly find me at my laptop way past 6pm (often later) most days. The taxpayer gets their money out of me, don’t worry about that.

“Thankfully, the new council leader, Linden Kemkaran, moved quickly to reassure people that nothing drastic was going to happen regarding WFH. I know a great many female colleagues were relieved that a woman was chosen to lead KCC, as she’ll know full well how difficult the life of a working mum is.”

The Insider went on to discuss the “perception that councils are full of profligate people burning through public funds to pay for stuff nobody wants or needs”.

They added: “For anyone interested, you can see where KCC spends its money – its Budget Book is right there on the internet – no hiding, no secrets, no fraud. All out in the open, as it should be.

“The Doge team will no doubt be revealing their findings in the coming weeks, but what makes people nervous isn’t the threat that we’ll all be shown up as money wasters, but that the findings will be presented without proper context.

“Local government is unbelievably complicated and deals with all manner of contracts which require financial and legal expertise. More often than not, we’re following policies and regulations set out in national legislation decided by government, not local councils.

“My point is that anybody could grab a headline figure, such as ‘KCC spends millions of pounds on X’, but beyond the initial outrage, you need to ask ‘Why has it spent X on X, what is the background story?’

“It’s not as sexy being the person asking the public to look at the tedious small print, but it’s essential they understand the full facts.

“But all this said, who knows? Maybe the whizkids with their laptops might discover vast waste and shameful inefficiencies, we’ll have to see…”