'Nasty' councillor jailed for coercive behaviour

A Kent county councillor has been sentenced to 12 months in prison after admitting behaving in a controlling or coercive way towards his wife.

Daniel Taylor, 35, from Margate was jailed at Margate Magistrates Court on Friday after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing.

Magistrate Mark Nieman told Taylor he was "a man who can be charming and pleasant, but you can be nasty and violent".

The court heard Taylor had shown controlling behaviour since 2014 and according to friends he was constantly putting his wife down and accusing her of cheating.

He demanded to look though her phone, isolated her from her friends and told her she was mentally unwell because she accused him of being controlling, the court was told.

The prosecution said Taylor had told his wife he would hunt her like prey and kill her, and that he would "put you in the boot and set fire to the car".

The court heard he did not intend to carry out the threats.

Taylor argued with the magistrate during sentencing.

He was brought to court from custody wearing prison-issue clothing after he was found to have breached his bail conditions.

The magistrate said: "You've shown complete disregard of the entire process, and it would be wholly unsuitable to put you back into the community at this time."

Taylor has lost his seat on Kent County Council following the sentence and the local authority said a by-election would be held in Cliftonville within 35 working days.

Labour MP Polly Billington, who represents East Thanet, said the case "points to the fact that Reform UK do not take vetting of their candidates seriously".

A Reform UK spokesperson said there was "no place in Reform for those who perpetrate violence against women and girls" and that the party had expelled Taylor after he pleaded guilty.