FOUR Reform UK councillors were suspended today after a video its flagship council’s leader telling members to “suck it up” was leaked to the press.

Footage of Kent County Council (KCC) leader Linden Kemkaran berating backbench members who questioned her during an internal online meeting was released by the Guardian on Saturday.

She told members that KCC is a “shop window” to show the country that Reform can govern competently, adding: “I am not a dictator or an autocrat. I like feedback, I like to discuss. I like to hear what everybody thinks.

“However, when it comes to making the really big decisions — and local government reorganisation is one of those really big decisions — I will make a decision that might not be liked by everybody in the group, but I am afraid you are just going to have to f****** suck it up.”

On screen, Reform councillors were left visibly shocked by her comments and she muted Cllr Paul Thomas after he then questioned whether Reform had the “right leader and the right cabinet.”

Saying that managing to avoid raising council tax by 5 per cent would be the “best thing” for KCC, Ms Kemkaran added: “People are looking at us, they are judging us every single day, every single minute of every single day.

“Nigel knows that. He is super aware that we are the flagship council.”

A Reform UK statement said: “Cllrs Paul Thomas, Oliver Bradshaw, Bill Barrett and Maxine Fothergill have had the whip suspended pending investigation, following evidence that they brought the party into disrepute.”

It is understood that their suspension relates to the leaked video.

The party won 57 of the 81 seats at the KCC local elections in May, overturning a 30-year Tory majority.

KCC opposition leader Liberal Democrat Antony Hook said: “We learned in the leaked video that they have no respect for each other — let alone respect for the public.”

A Labour Party statement said: “Reform’s leader in Kent said that Reform councils were ‘the biggest advert’ for what a Nigel Farage government would look like. Well, now we know what that means: complete chaos.

“For all Farage’s talk on cutting council waste hasn’t come close. Now members of his flagship council are fighting like rats in a sack.

“Reform is in meltdown and it’s local residents who will pay the price. Reform has shown it isn’t not up to the task and just can’t be trusted.”