Nigel Farage looked like a fool after claiming shortly before the midterm results came in, “I don’t go with that consensus that Donald Trump’s going to get absolutely smashed.” But the scale of his hero’s humiliation might just have let Reform off the hook.
Trump’s shellacking in the Democratic bluenami means a number of damaging stories about Farage’s party have not got the coverage they might ordinarily have warranted, with British political hacks distracted by events stateside.
One story which did get national attention – albeit much less than might otherwise have been expected – was that of a Hampshire councillor and senior Reform campaign manager being charged with 35 offences, including 12 of rape. George Madgwick also faces charges of false imprisonment, stalking and making a threat to kill, two of making an indecent image of a child and one of distributing an indecent image of a child. He faces a further charge of causing or inciting the sexual exploitation of a child.
Officers arrested Madgwick at an address in Wandsworth, south-west London, on January 6. According to his LinkedIn profile, Madgwick became a senior campaign manager at Reform’s headquarters in July. He describes his role as overseeing by-election campaigns and preparations for parliamentary contests across London and the south-east.
He was also elected to Hampshire Council in May, becoming the first leader of Reform’s group on the council and chairing its corporate services and resources select committee.
Meanwhile, in the West Midlands, a Reform member of Dudley Council has been forced to apologise for offensive comments made on social media before his election, saying he was not aware of the meaning of some of the terms he had used.
Caley Ashman had used the anti-Semitic term “goy-slop” and said: “You shouldn’t let foreigners look after the young or old as they don’t care about you.” A letter signed by the leaders of the Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat and Black Country Party groups on the council had called on Reform to suspend him.
Ashman has now apologised, saying: “I sincerely apologise to anyone who has been offended or hurt by my words.
“In particular, the use of the term ‘goy-slop’ was in the context of internet slang, referring to what I consider to be poor quality television and film content. It was not intended as a derogatory reference to Jewish people, or as an expression of antisemitism.”
Reform have declined to suspend him, with Marco Longhi, the former Conservative MP who now leads the Reform group on Dudley Council, saying that Ashman had been “a model councillor” since being elected. “He has not given me a single reason to doubt his commitment to his residents nor his integrity,” Longhi said.
In Suffolk, a Reform councillor has been sacked from his cabinet council post after he posted a sexualised AI-generated image of a female colleague on social media. Chris Hudson, cabinet member for highways and transport at Suffolk Council, posted an image online showing fellow Reform councillor June Mummery in a tight sequined bra with the slogan “I saved the Suffolk school nurses”.
Hudson was sacked from his cabinet position but defended the post, telling the BBC he intended for it to come across in a “girl power way” and had sent a copy of it to Mummery, who was “definitely on board” with it. “I certainly meant no offence and I apologise humbly and properly if anyone feels that,” he said.
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And in Leicestershire, the Reform leader of the county council has stood down after comments he made about staff redundancies were leaked online. Dan Harrison had been recorded saying 76 council solicitors would be made redundant, branding them “incompetent”, before saying “what I want to look at now is the women”, in remarks which were then released on social media.
In the recording, Harrison said: “There’s 76 solicitors will be made redundant [sic]. We’ll buy in the service, because [they are] incompetent. They’re not doing a good job.
“What I want to look at now is the women so it is ongoing, I would like it to be at great pace but I can tell you now if we suddenly drove massive redundancies the liberals would walk away.”
Harrison has now quit but continues to insist his remarks had been taken out of context. “I unequivocally reject any suggestion that staffing decisions are being taken based on gender,” said the man recorded as saying “what I want to look at now is the women”. He added: “The comments made in that meeting were taken completely out of context.” Another day in Reformland…
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