James McMurdock is the independent MP for South Basildon and East Thurrock, having first been elected to parliament at the 2024 general election as a Reform UK MP

In the 2024 general election, McMurdock (standing as a Reform candidate) won 12,178 votes, representing 30.8% of the vote. The Labour candidate, Jack Ferguson, received 12,080 votes (30.5%), while the Conservative incumbent, Stephen Metcalfe, secured 10,159 votes (25.7%). McMurdock was duly elected with a majority of 98.

The South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency is located in Essex, in the East of England region. The seat was held by the Conservative Party from its creation in 2010 to 2024.

McMurdock’s immediate predecessor as the MP for South Basildon and East Thurrock was Stephen Metcalfe of the Conservative Party.

Political Career

McMurdock’s victory in the 2024 general election was a significant surprise, including to Reform UK leader Farage, who described McMurdock as a “paper candidate”.

Farage stated: “Our candidate James McMurdock was a paper candidate, drafted in at the last minute, former city boy, and he was absolutely neck and neck with Labour.

“So I rang him up and said ‘Look, give me the name of your agent, so I can find out what’s happening because they were on the third recount’ – he said ‘I haven’t got an agent. I’m my own agent.’

“I said, ‘well, who’s in the hall watching the vote count? And he said ’my mum and dad’ – and he’s won. He’s an MP – go on my son!”

McMurdock joined Reform UK in May 2024 after feeling disillusioned with the mainstream parties. “I didn’t like the choices in front of me as a voter”, he later told the Telegraph.

After his election, it emerged that, aged 19, McMurdock served 21 days in a young offenders’ institution for assaulting a former girlfriend. In July 2025, McMurdock gave up the Reform whip after questions arose of his previous business dealings. The Sunday Times raised questions over tens of thousands of pounds worth of loans he took out under a Covid-19 support scheme.

At the time, McMurdock said his business dealings had been assessed by “appropriately qualified professionals” and “absolute compliance was confirmed”.

He added: “As a precautionary measure, and for the protection of Reform UK, I have asked to have the whip suspended temporarily.”

In a subsequent statement, McMurdock said: “I have now had a chance to take specialist legal advice from an expert in the relevant field.

“In light of that advice, which is privileged and which I choose to keep private at this time, I have decided to continue my parliamentary career as an independent MP where I can focus 100% on the interests of my constituents.”

McMurdock delivered his maiden speech on 9 September 2024 during a debate on transport.

In it, he said: “Since its inception as a constituency, people in South Basildon and East Thurrock had always voted blue, until they chose turquoise for the first time this July.

“To stand here today, I had to overcome a previous winning margin of 19,922. My own winning margin was less dominant: it was one of the tightest in the country, at just 98 votes. A swing that large is strong testament to the importance of listening to the people who put us here – all of them. That is a lesson I will not forget.”

He added: “I have the privilege to stand and champion the core values that so many from my home hold dear: independence, equality of opportunity, upward social mobility, courage, long suffering, honesty and forgiveness.

“I am grateful to champion these qualities not just because I believe in them but because I have benefited from them. I was the first in my family to go to university.

“I have been shown forgiveness, given opportunity and climbed upwards. As the door was opened for me, I will help hold it open for others.”

Political Views

Mass deportation: In May 2025, McMurdock signed an early day motion (EDM) concerning the mass deportation of illegal migrants. The motion, tabled by the independent MP Rupert Lowe, expressed “grave concern at the continued presence of over one million illegal migrants in the United Kingdom”.

The EDM urged the government to “implement a comprehensive national strategy to identify, detain, and deport all individuals found to be residing in the United Kingdom illegally, and to ensure that such policies are backed by the necessary legislative, diplomatic, logistical and financial resources to restore confidence in the rule of law and the security of our borders.”

Electoral reform

Proportional representation bill: In December 2024, McMurdock voted in favour of the Elections (Proportional Representation) Bill – introduced by Liberal Democrat frontbencher Sarah Olney under the 10-minute rule procedure. The bill sought to “introduce a system of proportional representation for parliamentary elections and for local government elections in England”.

A total of 138 MPs supported the bill – with 136 opposed. Notably, 59 Labour MPs backed Olney’s bill.

Introducing the bill, Olney told the House: “First past the post is a broken and unfair system. This summer, the Labour party won a landslide election victory, securing 63% of seats in the House of Commons in return for just 34% of the vote.

“The system leaves millions of voices unheard and creates a divisive, adversarial political climate where collaboration is discouraged and accountability is often sidestepped.”

Assisted dying

McMurdock voted against the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, better known as the assisted dying bill, at both second reading (November 2024) and third reading (June 2025).

Social values and conscience issues

Abortion decriminalisation (2025): McMurdock voted against a backbench amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill that sought to decriminalise abortion in England and Wales in June 2025. The amendment, which was passed by a majority of 242 votes, removed women from the threat of prosecution for ending a pregnancy at any stage. As an issue of conscience, MPs were allowed to vote according to their personal beliefs.

Before Politics

Born in June 1986, McMurdock grew up on a council estate in Vange, Basildon, and attended a local state school.

McMurdock was the first member of his family to attend university. He studied economics at the University of Sussex, graduating in 2010.

McMurdock worked in the banking sector from 2007 until his election in 2024. He held roles at Barclays, Goldman Sachs and Standard Chartered.

In 2006, aged 19, McMurdock was convicted of assaulting his then girlfriend in 2006 while drunk outside a nightclub. He pleaded guilty and served 21 days in a young offenders’ institution.

McMurdock describes the incident as the biggest regret of his life.

Upon his election in 2024, McMurdock told Sky News: “A generous person might call it a teenage indiscretion but I do not expect everyone to be so kind.

“Nearly 20 years ago, at 19 years of age, at the end of a night out together, we argued and I pushed her. She fell over and she was hurt. Despite being 38 now and having lived a whole life again I still feel deeply ashamed and apologetic.

“Despite us both being very drunk, I handed myself into the police immediately and admitted my fault. I was charged for what I did, not for what has been claimed, and I faced the consequences then and paid for my action in full.”

Personal Life

McMurdock is married.

Trivia

McMurdock ran his 2024 election campaign largely via TikTok, gaining 10,000 followers. He ultimately overturned a 20,000 majority with no serious fundraising or publicity.