Reform UK has gained its first councillor in Somerset after a long-standing Conservative councillor defected to the company.

Bente Height was originally elected to Mendip District Council in 2011 as a Conservative councillor for the Shepton East ward.

After retaining her seat in 2015, she successfully stood as an independent in 2019 before rejoining the Conservatives in July 2020, becoming one of two division members for Shepton Mallet on the new Somerset Council in the May 2022 local elections.

Nearly three years into her term, Ms Height has now jumped to Reform UK, believing that Nigel Farage's organisation will best represent the interest of her constituents.

She said: "I have spoken to Ann Widdecombe and others. I am now very happy that Reform UK will serve my constituency better than any other party."

Ms Height has been a frequent and vocal critic of the decisions of Somerset's various local authorities during her many years in public office.

In March 2021, she openly berated the head of the Somerset Waste Partnership over missed bin collections, describing the performance of its waste contractor Viridor as "the worst I've ever seen".

She has also opposed numerous local housing developments, arguing they would put too much pressure on the town's medical facilities and did not offer enough bungalows – remarking in March 2024 that Somerset was "drowning in old people".

Explaining her decision to defect, Ms Height said: "My constituents constantly tell me they see no difference between the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties.

"We have unique problems that are just not being dealt with by these parties.

"Report after report shows Shepton Mallet is the most impoverished town, yet residents are taxed more than those in more affluent areas like Wells and Frome.

"Many in social housing are now being pushed to the back of the queue because the priority is to house homeless newcomers.

"Families already housed have little expectation of moving within the system as their families grow.

"There are cases where our disabled residents are put on extended waiting lists, as they are no longer prioritised.

"Constituents constantly tell me that in some school classes, only one in four children are English speakers. This means that teaching is no more than 'daycare', and Shepton Mallet children are being educationally disadvantaged as a direct result.

"There are only two surgeries with no extra provision made for the many newly arriving people.

"Of huge frustration is also the lack of road maintenance, and the same old parties promise that they will deal with the problem, but instead spend precious money on frivolous things."

Ms Height is now an official member of Reform's Wells and Mendip Hills constituency branch, with the party seeking to improve on its performance at last year's general election – where it finished third behind the winning Lib Dem candidate Tessa Munt and Conservative candidate Meg Powell-Chandler.

Constituency branch chair Aimee Smith said: "It's fabulous to have Bente with us as we rapidly expand our members and supporters, and it's clear we are going to work very well together to bring the genuine change that people are so desperately seeking."

Following the defection, the current political make-up of the Council is as follows:

• Liberal Democrat – 60
• Conservative – 33
• Labour – 5
• The Green Party – 5
• Independent – 3
• No political group – 3
• Reform UK 1