EXCLUSIVE Britain's richest plumber Charlie Mullins reveals he's considering a UK return from his tax exile in Spain so he can become a Reform councillor
Charlie Mullins has been inspired by Reform's success in the local elections to renew his plans to return to the UK to stand as a councillor for the party.
Britain's richest plumber, who made £145million when he sold Pimlico Plumbers in 2021, is currently sunning himself in Spain and Dubai after fleeing Britain to avoid Labour 's 'tax grab'.
The 72-year-old insists he is 'loving life' abroad but would 'undoubtedly' consider coming back to contest a local council election in his native South London. He would also be interested in standing in a by-election for the Commons if one was declared.
Mr Mullins, a prominent Reform UK supporter, said he was encouraged by the party's success in local elections across parts of England last week.
The poll on May 1 saw Nigel Farage 's party win more than 650 council seats and seize control of 10 councils as Labour and the Tories suffered a grim night.
'The more Reform progress the more I want to get involved with them, and I'd undoubtedly consider coming back for a by-election or to run for a council seat,' he told MailOnline.
'Ideally it would be the area I come from in south-east London, so Bermondsey, Lambeth or Southwark. The business is in Lambeth so it would make sense to be a councillor there.
'It's become run down like many places but if you come from there you know what it takes to get things moving again - they need people who know what it takes to start a business. I have an apartment in Westminster so I'd be happy to try there but I'd imagine that would be harder.'
The next local council elections are on May 7, 2026, while a by-elections will only take place if an MP's seat becomes vacant before the next general election, which is currently slated for 2029.
Mr Mullins previously announced his interest in trying to become a councillor but told MailOnline he had ditched this plan after being threatened with having his OBE withdrawn over a social media attack on Sir Sadiq Khan.
The Honours Forfeiture Committee, which is convened on an ad-hoc basis by the Prime Minister and chaired by the Cabinet Secretary, first accused Mr Mullins of 'bringing the honours system into disrepute' in September over comments dating back to 2022.
They said they were 'minded to recommend to His Majesty that your OBE be revoked', citing a controversial X post he made about the Mayor of London as well as allegedly offensive jokes made online and in person.
'I didn't bother to run for a council because I had this threat of Labour trying to take my OBE away from me,' Mr Mullins said.
'So that's why I stepped away from it at that particular time. I wanted to keep away from it.
'But when their lawyers put their evidence through it was absolutely rubbish and about a few things I had put on TV or Twitter.'
Mr Mullins and his partner, Malak, currently split their time between a stunning villa in the Costa del Sol and Dubai, where the entrepreneur is currently planning to buy a property.
He has always denied wanting to 'run away' from tax and points out that he has been 'paying millions into the system for 50 years'.
'I'm happy to pay and contribute but I'm not happy about the money being wasted,' he said.
'More and more people are leaving the UK. I'm in Dubai at the moment and meeting people who aren't big business people but realise they can be miles better off.
'These local election results show it's no longer a two-horse race and Reform needs to be taken seriously.
'If Nigel Farage comes in I'll be back in the UK tomorrow. I don't think Labour will last their full term.'
Mr Mullins recently gave MailOnline an exclusive tour of his sumptuous villa in Mijas Costa, just up the road from Marbella.
The four-storey property boasts ensuite bedrooms on each floor, as well as a pool, a rooftop currently being converted into a bar area and a basement games room.
The businessman, who heads up a family of 11 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren, also owns a seven seater Land Rover for when 'the kids are in town.'
In 2023, Mr Mullins was suspended from X - formerly Twitter - after he wrote 'someone should kill' Mr Khan in a discussion about ULEZ.
He was told in March that no action would be taken after he pledged to undertake 'gender sensitivity and diversity training'.
Despite the case having been dropped, he has previously blasted Sir Keir for what he insisted was a politically motivated attack sparked by him leaving the UK in anger at the PM's policies.
A Government spokesperson said at the time: 'Claims that the Forfeiture Committee is politically motivated are completely unfounded and inaccurate.
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