Complaint made over Reform councillor's 'predatory' X posts

A sacked councillor's social media posts that have been described as "predatory" by an opposition party are being investigated by the council.

Reform UK's Chris Hudson was removed from his Suffolk County Council's cabinet job on Tuesday after he posted a sexualised AI image of a female colleague.

The council confirmed complaints had been filed with its monitoring officer over his social media activity, one of which the BBC understands involves an allegation of interaction with accounts of young women offering adult content.

Hudson had already apologised for the AI image, but said of the alleged wider social media activity that he had "no knowledge" of it.

On Tuesday, Hudson said he "certainly meant no offence and I apologise humbly and properly" for the AI image that mocked up Reform councillor June Mummery in a tight sparkly, low-cut top.

The BBC has seen evidence of one of the complaints which shows screenshots allegedly of interactions between Hudson's social media account and that of young women who offer adult content. Some of these have now been deleted.

The Green Party, the main opposition group at the council, said: "Our group have been compelled to submit a formal complaint regarding councillor Hudson's conduct, from the recent and historical posts on his councillor X account.

"In our opinion he brings the council into disrepute, and causes concerns regarding their predatory nature.

"We acknowledge that councillor Hudson has been stripped of his portfolio holder role, but if Reform wanted to show true leadership they should have removed him from their group."

Asked about his alleged conduct on X, Hudson told the BBC: "I have no knowledge or relationship with any of these deleted tweets - many people contact me."

Reform's council leader Michael Hadwen released a statement on Tuesday saying Hudson was being removed from his cabinet role for highways and transport.

On Wednesday, he confirmed Hudson's removal was due to him posting the image of Mummery and he added that he "did not condone" the mock-up.

Hudson remains a member of the Reform group and a councillor for Brook ward, to the south-west of Ipswich.

Councillors have to abide by a code of conduct which is based around the Nolan principles.

They generally cover the following:

• Integrity and honesty
• Acting lawfully
• Treating all persons fairly and with respect
• Leading by example and acting in a way that secures public confidence

If a complaint about a councillor breaching the code is made, it goes to the monitoring officer who will assess it. They may also involve an independent person to look at the complaint.

If it is accepted, the complaint will then be fully investigated and it could then go to the council's standards committee for a formal hearing.

A councillor cannot lose their seat this way, but they could be given a written warning, asked to make a formal public apology and attend training.

The investigation process is confidential.

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