Reform has lost another councillor
A Reform UK councillor who has attended protests outside the Bell Hotel in Epping has been suspended after sharing social media posts claiming asylum seekers were “paedophiles” and that Islam is “evil”.
The i Paper has reported that James Regan, who was elected to Ongar Town Council in May, called the Bell Hotel a “paedophile babysitting centre”.
In other posts on X, the Reform councillor described Islam as “an evil criminal cartel of evil pedo’s [sic]”, and stated that “Islam will suck our benefit system dry”.
Responding to the investigation, a Reform spokesperson said “Councillor Regan has been suspended from Reform UK pending investigation. We do not tolerate any forms of racism.”
Protests against the Bell Hotel being used as asylum accommodation have been organised through Epping Says No, a Facebook group managed by three members of far-right group the Homeland Party.
The protests started on 13 July, after Hadush Kebatu, a man living at the Bell Hotel in Epping, was charged with sexual assault, harassment, and inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity. Kebatu denies the offences.
Regan has regularly attended the Bell Hotel protests. In a TikTok video he filmed outside the hotel, Regan said: “Thanks to the British Government, we now have a third world paedophile babysitting centre in the middle of Epping.”
In another post, he falsely claimed that the police had escorted “an aggressive counter group” directly towards the Bell Hotel protestors, because police “actually want trouble”.
Essex police have straight out refuted these claims, and called on Nigel Farage, who also claimed the police had bussed in counter protestors.
Farage was later forced to apologise after he received a call from a police officer telling him he was wrong.
Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward
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