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  "description": "The leader of Leicestershire County Council has urged Reform UK's deputy leader Richard Tice to remove the whip from fellow party member Joseph Boam",
  "path": "/council-leader-urges-reform-uk-to-expel-joseph-boam/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-02-11T11:51:08.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.leicester.news",
  "tags": [
    "****Leicester Gazette****",
    "Learn more",
    "a BBC report",
    "__Click here for membership__",
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  "textContent": "\n\nThis story was written by the ****local democracy reporting service (LDRS),**** a BBC-funded scheme to improve the coverage of issues relating to local democracy. The ****Leicester Gazette**** has been a partner in the scheme since March 2024, and so receives some stories as part of it.\n\n Learn more \n\nIn a letter to Tice, Dan Harrison criticised his former deputy council leader Boam over a social media post in which he said “I stand with ICE”, hours after federal immigration agents fatally shot nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis last month.\n\nHarrison went as far as asking Tice to “kick Joseph out of the party”.\n\nIn response, Boam claims he is “none the wiser” about attempts to remove the party whip. He told the local democracy reporting service (LDRS): “I rang [Reform] HQ, and I am still in the party, so there’s nothing to worry about. Always got on with Dan and have known him a while, so I don’t know where it’s all come from.\n\n“I don’t know what to say, really, but as far as I’m aware, I’m still in Reform, and I’m thought of quite highly by [Reform] HQ, so I don’t think there’s anything to worry about”.\n\nAccording to a BBC report, 79 complaints had been made about Reform UK councillors since the party took control at County Hall in May of which 40 were lodged against Boam.\n\n## Be part of the story\n\nJoin our free mailing list to get local news and tips in your inbox every week.\n\nSubscribe for free\n\nEmail sent! Check your inbox to complete your signup.\n\n__No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Want to support our work?____Click here for membership__ __.__\n\nBoam was not the only Leicestershire Reform councillor to back ICE officers following the shooting, with Valley ward councillor Michael Squires congratulating them for their “heroic work saving the United States of America”.\n\nBoth councillors were widely condemned and were even criticised by Harrison in an email to staff and the media.\n\n“I am aware that some staff will have been upset by the posts, and I wanted to address that directly,” Harrison wrote.\n\n“These messages were posted without my knowledge or blessing.\n\n“It is not appropriate for county councillors to get involved in or comment publicly on what is a serious matter for the US government.”\n\nSquires has since made a full apology and that he “deeply regrets” the comments made, and will undergo further training on the Members’ Code of Conduct and the use of social media.\n\nWhen approached by the LDRS, Reform refused to comment, but they told the BBC: “As standard, we do not provide a running commentary on any disciplinary matters.”\n\nHarrison and Squires also declined to comment.\n\n****If you enjoyed this article and want more great local journalism, here’s how to get it.****\n\nWe publish investigations, news features and human interest stories that go beyond the headlines. Our journalism is fact-based and rigorous, and we prize good writing over clickbait and sensationalism.\n\nOur readers get all our stories directly in their inbox every Monday morning via our free weekly newsletter. ****Use that button below to sign up for free.****\n\n__No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Want to support our work?____Click here for membership__ __.__\n\nSubscribe for free",
  "title": "Council leader urges Reform UK to expel Joseph Boam",
  "updatedAt": "2026-02-11T11:51:08.000Z"
}