‘It’s been an enormous privilege’: Leeds Reform UK councillor to stand down from role
She has represented Pudsey since 2019
Leeds councillor Trish Smith has announced she will step down from her role next year.
The Reform UK councillor, who has represented Pudsey since 2019, has confirmed she will not seek re-election in May - citing her health, demands on her family life and the impact of personal abuse as her reasons for the decision.
Coun Smith was first elected as a Conservative in 2019 and held the Pudsey seat again in 2023.
She resigned from the Conservative Party shortly after the 2024 local election, saying at the time that she had “no option” but to leave the party.
She sat as an independent before joining Reform UK, and won the party’s first seat in Leeds City Council in 2025.
In a statement, Coun Smith said the decision to stand down is also partly due to her health, and said the role had placed demands on her family and personal life.
She said: “Birthdays are missed. Christmases, bank holidays and evenings are interrupted. Plans change because somebody needs help. Your phone doesn’t know it’s Sunday, and you never completely switch off from the responsibility that comes with representing thousands of people.
“Nobody should become a councillor for the money. You do it because you care about the place you represent and because, however frustrating and demanding it can sometimes be, you believe you can make a difference.”
In her statement, she spoke at length about the abuse she says she has experienced during her time as a councillor, including a recent incident where she was followed through Pudsey.
“I was terrified and rarely go out alone now,” she added.
“There is no clever or more diplomatic way of putting it than that.
“At a time when we have all seen the very real consequences that threats and violence can have for people in public life, being followed and wondering about somebody’s intentions is not something you simply shrug off when you get home.
“Nobody standing for election, of any party or none, should have to wonder whether the person behind them is simply walking the same way or whether they need to be worried about what happens next.
“That isn’t something I am prepared to normalise as simply being ‘part of the job’.”
Coun Smith said she intended to remain involved with other community organisations and causes in Pudsey.
Looking ahead to next May, she said she hoped whoever replaced her would provide independent representation for the ward.
Coun Smith currently sits alongside Conservative councillors Dawn Seary and Simon Seary.
“Pudsey deserves strong representation,” she said.
“It deserves councillors with energy, fresh ideas and, importantly, independence.”
“It has been an enormous privilege,” she added.
“I remain every bit as committed to Pudsey as I was when I first put my name on a ballot paper.
“I’m simply ready for the next chapter.”