This morning, Roger Tarrant, Cornwall councillor for Redruth North, announced his departure from Reform UK and his role as Deputy Leader of the council’s Reform group. In his statement, Tarrant claimed the party had undergone “significant changes,” while he had remained true to his own principles, and therefore must leave. He is now the first representative for Restore Britain in Cornwall and the wider South West

Roger Tarrant, Councillor for Redruth North since May 2025.

Restore Britain is a fascist political party formed in February 2026 by Rupert Lowe, the snubbed rebel of Reform’s original five MPs. The party’s platform is positioned further to the right than Reform UK, and antifascist research group Hope Not Hate has warned that its rhetoric pushes public discourse towards a more explicit racialisation of national politics. Its formation followed months of infighting between Lowe and Nigel Farage, during which Lowe questioned Farage’s “messianic qualities.” Reform later reported Lowe to the police over alleged incidents of bullying involving then-party chairman Zia Yusuf.

In particular, Restore’s policy emphasis is on “re-migration,” a term used to describe the mass deportation of immigrant communities from the UK – a goal popular among parts of the European far right and online neo-Nazi groups. Some experts have described the policy as a form of “ethnic cleansing” targeting migrant communities.

Tarrant’s leadership role within the Reform group was evident in both policy and rhetoric. He shared a stage with Nigel Farage in February 2025, when Reform UK held a national conference at Carn Brea Leisure Centre. In November 2025, Tarrant tabled a motion at Cornwall Council calling for all equality, diversity, and inclusion policies to be scrapped. Despite repeated contact from Cobblestone Media, no further statement has been issued by the council’s cabinet regarding the status of this motion, suggesting it has been ignored.

In a Facebook post on the defection, party leader Rupert Lowe stated:

“I’m delighted to welcome Councillor Roger Tarrant to Restore Britain – previously Reform’s deputy leader on Cornwall Council.

“We have a strong presence in Cornwall already, and Roger’s experience will be a huge plus for us. A businessman and a patriot. Just what Britain needs!”

He became the group’s deputy leader in October 2025 after the party saw five councillors defect amid public disputes and internal tensions. While this period of instability has largely subsided, and Reform even managed to retake a seat in the St Column minor by-election, the loss of a deputy leader to a (further-right) party could draw Reform Cornwall into renewed internal strife.

Image Via: Cobblestone Media.