Reform UK’s sacked housing chief Simon Dudley with former PM Theresa May, who condemned remarks he made in 2018(Image: Twitter)
Less than a month after being named as Nigel Farage’s housing chief, Simon Dudley’s political career is in tatters after horrendous remarks about the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
The former Tory council leader’s appointment as Reform UK’s housing spokesman on March 10 was hailed as a breakthrough by the Reform hierarchy. Mr Farage’s number two, Richard Tice, enthused: “He knows how to get projects moving. That is exactly what we need.”
But his sick remark that “everyone dies in the end” when talking about safety regulation following the Grenfell fire – a preventable tragedy which claimed 72 lives – was his downfall. Mr Dudley, whose previous roles include chairing an affordable housing provider, was removed by Mr Farage as fury grew over his comments.
Nigel Farage announced on Wednesday that Mr Dudley had been sacked(Image: Getty Images)
No stranger to controversy, he sparked an outcry as Conservative leader of Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Council, when he called for “aggressive begging” to be tackled ahead of Harry and Meghan’s wedding. He said street begging caused a hostile atmosphere for tourists, adding it could present Windsor in a “sadly unfavourable light” on the big day. More than 100,000 people signed a petition condemning the remark, and then-PM Theresa May said in January 2018: “I don’t agree with the comments that the leader of the council has made.”
Like the party leader, Mr Dudley’s background was in finance and banking, with a 30 year career including work at HSBC, Svenska Handelsbanken and Citigroup Global Markets. He also worked on the £16billion purchase of Heathrow Airport Holdings in 2006.
