Reform UK Doncaster leader resigns after being defeated in council chamber by his own party

Cllr Aston’s leadership of Doncaster Reform UK, and thusly his position as the council’s leader of the opposition, was called into question at a council meeting on Thursday, when his own members rejected his attempts to remove Cllr Jason Charity from his role as chair of audit committee.

Cllr Charity was, until recently, a member of Aston’s leadership team, but stepped away to the backbenches over a disagreement on the “direction” of the party.

In a resignation email to his councillors, seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), Aston wrote: “Since the end of yesterday’s Full Council Meeting, I have received several, unpleasant, vitriolic texts that border on abuse.

“While I would expect such behaviour from the extreme wing of our opponents, it is disappointing to see it coming from my own side, Reform councillors, and a few others. I believed Reform was better than this; clearly, I was mistaken.

“As a result, with immediate effect, I am resigning as the leader of Reform in Doncaster. I will focus my time and efforts on my ward instead.”

Aston’s difficult week started following a joint statement released with the Labour Mayor of Doncaster on Monday, November 24, 2025, in which the pair said they were “in agreement” on the need to borrow £57million to re-open Doncaster Sheffield Airport (DSA).

Sources within Reform UK expressed anger with the move, which one claims there was no prior warning for, seeing it as Aston “getting into bed” with Labour.

Cllr Charity stepped away from Aston’s leadership team the following day, leading to the then group leader’s attempt to replace him as chair of Audit Committee at Thursday’s meeting.

The proposal on Charity’s committee positions, which was backed by Labour councillors, was resoundingly rejected by Reform UK’s own members.

It is the latest and most significant development since Reform UK entered Doncaster Council for the first time in May 2025.

37 Reform UK councillors were elected at the local elections in May, within a month this was reduced to 36 after Cllr Mark Broadhurst was stripped of the party whip over social media posts he had previously made on his Facebook page.

A few months later, Cllr Samuel Booth resigned entirely as a councillor, prompting a by-election in Bentley ward.

In September, Cllr Dave Knight lost the party whip over the establishment of Fly Doncaster (Auxiliary Services) Ltd, prompting conflict of interest concerns due to his position on the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee (OSMC) which was about to scrutinise the council’s plans to re-open DSA with public funds.

Cllr Rachel Reed had to step down as OSMC chair and as Cllr Aston’s deputy due to her links with the establishment of the company, though she retained the party whip.

Weeks after that, Cllr Christopher Marriott voluntarily resigned the party whip, prefering to sit as an independent councillor.

Cllr Aston will continue as a Reform UK councillor on the backbenches as the party begins its search for a new group leader. A spokesperson for the national Reform UK headquarters said this would be done “as soon as possible”.

“We thank Cllr Aston for his hard work and stewardship as leader of Reform UK on Doncaster City Council,” the spokesperson said.

“An election of a new group leader will take place as soon as possible, with councillor Karl Hughes taking on the position in the interim,” they added.

Cllr Hughes was deputy leader of the Reform group on Doncaster Council, chosen to succeed Cllr Rachel Reed, who stepped down as deputy following a conflict of interest safa surrounding the establishment of Fly Doncaster (Auxiliary Services) Ltd.

Hughes, a former policeman, also took over from Reed as the chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee.