Reform UK election complaint dismissed by Portsmouth City Council
Portsmouth City Council has dismissed a complaint from Reform UK alleging election law breaking by the Liberal Democrats, with the party rejecting the claims as “hogwash”.
As the local elections approach on May 7, the Portsmouth Reform UK group raised concerns over letters sent by the Lib Dems to residents before the official pre-election period, which began on March 25.
In an email to the election’s returning officer, Councillor George Madgwick, the former leader of the Reform UK group, questioned whether the letter constituted an early declaration of candidacy.
The letter, signed by Fratton ward candidate Billy Ansell, states he has “been asked to stand to become one of the local councillors here” followed by “I’m standing for the Lib Dems”.
Cllr Madgwick argued this meant Mr Ansell was declaring himself a candidate before the official nominations – the deadline for submitting nomination papers is April 9.
Under election rules, politicians are limited in how much they can spend campaigning for their candidacy, calculated as £960 plus 8p per registered voter in the ward. Cllr Madgwick argued that the cost of posting the letters should count towards this spending limit.
In the 2024 local elections, some 10,561 Fratton residents are registered to vote. Using that figure, the spending limit for the ward would be around £1,800.
Cllr Madgwick speculated that the cost could reach £5,500, based on the average price of a second-class stamp, though it is not known how many letters were sent.
He concluded: “Given the apparent scale of the expenditure and the risk of a breach, I request that you formally remind the candidate and agent of their legal obligations and the spending limits under the Representation of the People Act 1983. If you conclude a breach is likely to have occurred I request you formally notify the police and the local party.”
A Portsmouth City Council spokesperson confirmed the claims has been investigated. They said: “We received an enquiry related to campaign leaflets. Our Returning Officer reviewed it and has responded to say that no breach of the Electoral Commission guidance or the Representation of the People Act has been found.”
A Portsmouth Liberal Democrat spokesperson described the accusations as “complete rubbish”, adding “if they knew election law they would know it’s absolute rubbish”.
“Election expenses start after we submit our Candidate papers to the Council’s Elections Office. We haven’t yet.
“They hope people are inexperienced enough to fall for it but it’s complete hogwash.
“I suppose it’s because the Reform councillors in Portsmouth are inexperienced in the same way they put forward a budget which meant they were saving up huge cuts for future years.”