Reform UK politician was detained as a teenager for kicking girlfriend at time

Reform UK MP James McMurdock was jailed for repeatedly kicking his girlfriend 18 years ago, it has emerged, as fresh details in the scandal over the politician’s crime come to light.

- MILLIE COOKE

Mr McMurdock claimed he had “pushed” his partner when details of his historical conviction, which he had not disclosed to the public before the election, were first revealed in July.

But court records from his sentencing, obtained by The Times this week, show he was detained in a young offenders’ institution for 21 days for kicking the victim around four times, in an incident which took place in 2006.

According to the records obtained and reported on by The Times, Mr McMurdock pleaded guilty to assault by beating, and the “serious nature of the offence” meant the sentence was not suspended. The Times reported the offence “requires immediate punishment” and that a pre-sentence report indicated a “lack of willingness to comply”.

The conviction initially came to light when the victim’s mother told the Mail Online he had “left marks on her body” and “it took two security guards to pull him off her” during the attack outside a nightclub in Chelmsford, Essex.

At the time of those revelations, Mr McMurdock apologised for what he described as the “biggest regret of my life” but downplayed the assault as a “teenage indiscretion” and disputed the details of the mother’s account.