Tories call on watchdog to carry out probe into Reform's 'data requests'

But Reform claims Tories are 'desperate to cover up waste of deposed regimes'

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THE information watchdog should open an investigation into Reform UK, because of risks around data it has requested for its town hall cost-cutting drive, the Conservatives have said.

Nigel Farage’s political party has requested a broad swathe of information from the councils it now controls across England - including Staffordshire - as it begins an initiative to drive down local public spending based on the US's Department of Government Efficiency, also known as Doge.

But shadow communities secretary Kevin Hollinrake warned that handing the data to Reform is a 'cyber-security disaster waiting to happen' as he wrote to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) calling for an investigation.

Data about the identities of whistleblowers, the names and addresses of people who receive meals on wheels, and the amount of cash foster carers receive could be revealed and put at risk in the broad package Reform has requested, the Tories claimed.