Reform councillor charged with 35 offences including rape

A Reform UK councillor has been charged with 35 offences, including 12 counts of rape, and suspended by the party.

George Madgwick, a councillor on Hampshire County Council, has been suspended from Reform UK with "immediate effect", a party spokesperson said.

He has been bailed and is due to appear at Portsmouth Magistrates' Court on 25 November.

The charges against Madgwick, 37, relate to four victims, aged between 16 and 17 at the time of the alleged offences, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said.

They are said to have taken place between 2008 and 2021, both in Portsmouth and Wales.

Madgwick, of Portsmouth, has been charged with offences, which include:

• Twelve offences of rape
• Two offences of assault by penetration
• Two offences of sexual assault
• One offence of causing or inciting sexual exploitation of a child
• Two offences of making indecent images of children
• One offence of distributing an indecent image of a child
• Eight offences of assault occasioning actual bodily harm
• Two offences of controlling or coercive behaviour
• One offence of stalking
• One offence of making threats to kill
• One offence of false imprisonment
• One offence of theft
• One offence of criminal damage

Police launched an investigation in July 2025 after officers received a report of a sexual offence. On 6 January 2026, a man was arrested at an address in Wandsworth, London.

Madwick represents the North East Havant ward in Havant, Hampshire, and was elected in May 2026.

A spokesperson from the Crown Prosecution Service said: "The Crown Prosecution Service has decided to prosecute George Madgwick for serious sexual offences, including multiple counts of rape.

"He has also been charged with making a threat to kill, false imprisonment and stalking.

"Our prosecutors have worked to establish that there is sufficient evidence and that it is in the public interest to bring the case to court.

"We remind all concerned that proceedings against the defendant are now active and that he has the right to a fair trial. There should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information which could in any way prejudice these proceedings."

Hampshire Country Council said they are "aware of the charges brought against Councillor George Madgwick. These are extremely serious allegations and, as criminal proceedings are now underway, it is not appropriate for the County Council to comment further at this time.

"Councillor Madgwick remains an elected member of the County Council under the rules of the Local Government Act 1972. Being charged with a criminal offence does not in itself disqualify a councillor from office."

(c) Sky News 2026: Reform councillor charged with 35 offences including rape