Councillor sacked after posting sexualised AI image of colleague

A Reform UK politician has been sacked from his senior council post after he posted a sexualised AI-generated image of a female colleague on social media.

The since-deleted post was published on X by Chris Hudson, cabinet member for highways and transport at Suffolk County Council, at 15:44 GMT on Monday.

It included an image which showed fellow Reform councillor June Mummery in a tight, sequined bra with the slogan "I saved the Suffolk school nurses!".

Hudson was removed 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.

Other people screen-shotted the post and put it on other social media outlets, such as Facebook.

The decision to remove Hudson from his job was confirmed by Reform's council leader Michael Hadwen "with regret".

"I would like to thank councillor Hudson for his hard work, dedication and service during his tenure as a cabinet member. His efforts on behalf of Suffolk residents are appreciated," said Hadwen, whose party took control of the council in May.

Hudson's decision to post the image was met with waves of condemnation from opposition councillors.

Annette Dunning, deputy leader of the Green Party group, accused him of sharing "non-consensual and sexualised AI deepfakes".

She said that cabinet member Mummery, who is councillor for Carlton Colville, "must be appalled" by the image, which she added was "a severe violation of digital safety".

"This total disrespect towards a fellow councillor brings Suffolk County Council into disrepute and it reflects badly on us as a professional organisation and as an employer," she said.

"What message is this sending to women in public life, council employees and of course, all our female residents?"

The slogan on Hudson's image, which also showed Mummery wearing dangling, glistening earrings, referred to the council rowing back on plans to reduce the number of nurses on its health visiting teams.

Mummery has been approached by the BBC for comment.

Conservative county councillor for Kesgrave, Debbie McCallum, shadow spokesperson for communities, called for a full investigation and further sanctions, and said "serious questions must be asked about why he remains a member of the Reform UK group".

"We need to make it clear that this kind of behaviour towards women is unacceptable and must not be tolerated," she said.

"Women have worked hard to secure their place in public life and deserve to be treated with dignity and respect."

Former county and Ipswich Borough councillor Nadia Cenci said: "The reason I highlighted the post is because only 10% of the Reform councillors are women and they need to be treated with the utmost respect and not sexualised."

John Ward, Independent councillor on Babergh District Council and its deputy leader, said he was "astonished" when he saw the post.

"It seemed highly inappropriate for a cabinet member to depict a colleague in a sexualised manner like that," he said.

Hudson told the BBC that he put out the post of Mummery "in a Las Vegas dress" because she talks about having a "Las Vegas moment" and because she had "worked hard" on behalf of school nurses.

He said the image was "not obscene", but he apologised to anyone who may have found it offensive.

"I can't go back on it because it's out there, but I did it [with] an almost feminist angle of 'big up the girls', girl power if you want, like the Spice Girls almost," he said.

"She is a very bright, positive, extremely well turned out lady, and I thought the dress was in no way obscene.

"It was perhaps a little glamorous, some might say a little revealing, but I would not describe it as pornographic. I'm not interested in such things."

Hudson's use of the AI-generated sexualised image comes after non-consensual images and videos of Suffolk MP Jess Asato, including some showing her being sexually assaulted, were shared on X.

The Labour MP for Lowestoft vowed to take legal action against Elon Musk's xAI through the High Court.

She claimed the platform had been used to create "disgusting" images, including a fake picture of her in a bikini, by its artificial intelligence chatbot Grok.

When quizzed by the BBC on whether he could see the danger in using AI and fake imagery online and if it could be demeaning to women, Hudson said: "I could see that very, very easily and I can see [the post] is very eye-catching, but we've had many feminist icons who dress in similar dresses to that.

"There was no intention to deceive, there was no intention to upset, there was no intention to hurt [Mummery], but I regret very much any harm that people may feel."

Martin Cook, leader of the county council Labour group, asked: "It's a simple question — does Michael Hadwen think posting a fake sexualised image of a female colleague is acceptable from a Reform councillor? Yes or no."

Hadwen added that councillor Patti Mulcahy had been chosen to replace Hudson in his cabinet role.

"I'm looking forward to welcoming her into the cabinet team and continuing our work to put Suffolk communities first," he added.

Hudson represents the Brook ward on the south-western edge of Ipswich, including Pinewood, Copdock, Sproughton, Hintlesham, Elmsett and Aldham.