A Reform UK candidate has criticised the decision to cancel the planned hustings at Winchmore School with just one day’s notice

Enfield Council has defended a decision to cancel an election hustings event at a local school with just one day’s notice.

The event had been due to take place last Wednesday (15^th) at Winchmore School and was intended to help hundreds of sixth form students decide who to vote for in their first-ever election.

However, candidates from six political parties who had been scheduled to appear at the event were told the day before that it would no longer be going ahead.

The council claims that it had not been made aware of the event until the Tuesday and acted swiftly to cancel it after claiming it did not comply with pre-election ‘purdah’ rules which do not allow the use of public resources for the promotion of individual candidates.

Purdah rules do, however, allow election hustings to take place if they comply with strict guidance set out by the Electoral Commission. The council is arguing in this case that they did not, while Reform UK is arguing that they did.

An email sent to the school and seen by the Dispatch shows a council official explaining the reason for the cancellation, writing: “The council’s responsibility to ensure that its resources are not used for political purposes extends to schools that are run independently of the council, but who receive funding from public resources […] school staff should not be involved in any activity (in their official capacity) that promotes or is perceived to promote a political party or any candidate or politician involved in the election.

“This includes participating in or organising events that could give a platform for political comment or publicity.”

But Navtaij Singh Sangha, the Reform candidate who had been due to take part in the hustings, said: “Purdah simply does not apply to hustings provided the guidance set out by the Electoral Commission are followed […] I’m afraid the council’s position does not stack up or align with the evidence provided by the school.”

One of the key points of disagreement is whether the hustings at Winchmore School provided a platform for all parties standing in the election. While six party representatives were due to appear, covering all the main political groups locally, the council claims that it still did not comply – with minor parties such as the Christian People’s Alliance and Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition not involved.

An Enfield Council spokesperson said: “While there is government guidance that allows schools to hold hustings, in this instance only a selection of candidates was invited. This would therefore be regarded as a selective hustings, where the effect (and potentially the intention) is to promote particular candidates or parties.

“Schools have a duty to avoid partisan political activity, and selective events during purdah should be avoided.

“On this basis, we advised against the event proceeding, as it would breach purdah rules. In short, a school cannot hold, participate in, facilitate, or promote an event featuring election candidates in the run-up to an election, as it is a publicly funded body.”

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