Reform is facing the “hard reality” of having to raise council tax by 5 per cent for a further 1.2 million people at one of its flagship authorities, The i Paper has been told.

Local leaders in eight of the 13 councils led by Nigel Farage’s party have already indicated they are likely to raise council tax next April , despite having pledged to to freeze it.

Now opposition leaders say they are expecting the same at Lancashire County Council where Reform took control in May’s election.

It is the third-largest authority in the country, but like all councils, it is struggling with increasing costs and is on course to overspend by almost £28m by the end of the financial year.

Reform’s national leaders promised to send in Elon Musk-style Doge units to find waste and inefficiencies but no

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