Reform MP James McMurdock removes whip 'from himself' pending investigation

An MP for Reform UK has removed the whip from himself in connection to allegations expected to be published in a newspaper.

The move by James McMurdock, which effectively suspends him from the parliamentary party and means he will now sit as an independent MP, was announced on Saturday by the party’s chief whip Lee Anderson.

“I have today received a call from James McMurdock who has advised me, as Chief Whip, that he has removed the party whip from himself pending the outcome of an investigation into allegations that are likely to be published by a national newspaper,” he said.

“The allegations relate to business propriety during the pandemic and before he became an MP.

“At Reform UK we take these matters very seriously and James has agreed to cooperate in full with any investigation. We will not be commenting further at this moment.”

Moments later, Sunday Times Whitehall Editor Gabriel Pogrund shared Anderson’s post on X, writing: “STAY TUNED: The Sunday Times will be publishing its investigation shortly.”

The newspaper subsequently published a story on its website, reporting that McMurdock took out £70,000 in loans during the Covid-19 pandemic under the government’s Bounce Back loans scheme in 2020.

McMurdock is alleged to have done this through two companies he owned – JAM Financial Limited and Gym Live Health and Fitness Limited.

The former of these companies had “no employees and negligible assets until the pandemic”, according to the Sunday Times, which said for the £50,000 loan taken out for the firm, it would have needed to report turnover of at least £200,000.

In 2021, McMurdock resigned as director and transferred his company shares to his mother. The newspaper also reports that the MP borrowed £20,000 for Gym Live Health and Fitness Limited, which was dormant until January 31, 2020.

The company would have needed turnover of £100,000 under the bounce back scheme, but neither of the two businesses filed accounts or annual corporate filings after the loans, the Sunday Times says.

This is in breach of the Companies Act, and would have seen both companies struck off the register, but the process was halted after a third party submitted an objection to the company regulator in February 2023, the newspaper claims.

McMurdock has represented South Basildon and East Thurrock since last July’s general election. He won the seat by 98 votes, beating Labour into second place, and taking the seat from the Conservatives.

He will now sit as an independent MP while the latest claims are investigated.

The 39-year-old MP attracted controversy following his election after it emerged he had been convicted of assaulting his former girlfriend.

McMurdock did not publicly disclose his conviction for assault before being elected in 2024, and claimed he had “pushed” his partner when details were first disclosed.

The Times later obtained information about his sentencing from the courts, which said he was detained for 21 days in a young offender institution for kicking the victim “around four times” in 2006 when he was a teenager.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage last year described McMurdock as “good example to young tearaways” who “picked himself up from a terrible situation and made a big success”.