The journal's Editor-in-Chief has received a message from the corresponding author of the manuscript stating that the proposed editorial edits go beyond typical formatting edits at this stage. They felt that many of the edits were inappropriate, needed a further response, and suggested that this article (which had already been in the journal for over a year) be left to the next Editor-in-Chief when they are appointed.

The section editor recommended acceptance of the article with the suggested editorial corrections, and it was generally agreed that the changes improved readability and clarity, particularly for readers who may not have been very familiar with the general topic of the article. There were also some issues during peer review where authors did not always follow the section editor's recommendations.
The current editor-in-chief decided not to renew their contract, based on repeated anonymous accusations that the magazine was taking too long to publish.
COPE Tip
An editor has the right to edit magazine style, grammar, readability, etc. The author has the right to disagree and has the right not to publish. They cannot be forced to publish unless they agree to the edits.
Alternatively, authors can be given the option to email abstracts that indicate areas that require further work. The editor may give a deadline for the authors to make a decision.
Failing that, another option would be to bring in another senior editor of the journal (independent of the previous process and with no conflict of interest) to review the case, with both parties agreeing to accept the outcome.

The editor may wish to check that the journal's guidelines clearly define copywriting, technical and/or editorial style, and formatting so that authors know what to expect. It should also be noted that the magazine reserves the right to edit content that is offensive, biased, factually incorrect, defamatory, etc. Sometimes these issues aren't highlighted until post-acceptance editing; acceptance after review does not mean that the accepted version will be published as is.

Source:  https://publicationethics.org/case/author-refuses-comply-editorial-review-prior-production-and-publication