Former Tory councillor jailed for 20 weeks for stalking Dame Penny Mordaunt

A former Tory councillor has been jailed for 20 weeks after being found guilty of stalking ex-cabinet minister Dame Penny Mordaunt.

Edward Brandt, 61, was found guilty of the offence in November following a trial at Southampton Crown Court, but was acquitted of the more serious offence of stalking involving serious alarm or distress. In a victim impact statement read to the court, the former Conservative cabinet minister said: "I am completely exhausted due to the stress, every time I step out of the building I am looking over my shoulder and checking to see if he is there.

"I am living in a constant fear of a confrontation. It's hugely impacted all aspects of my life, both my professional life and personal life, and I cannot stress enough how much I am exhausted by it." The court previously heard Dame Penny believed Brandt was a "real threat" and feared "sexual violence" because of his "creepy" behaviour.

The trial was told that Brandt sent at least 17 emails and three phone messages to Dame Penny, as well as turning up at her Portsmouth constituency office out of hours between 11 September 2023 and 12 May 2024. Brandt, who lived on the Isle of Wight at the time, failed to comply with the terms of a conditional caution issued in April 2024, which required him to complete a victim awareness course and not to contact Dame Penny, the trial heard.

'I am not giving up' The divorced father of two then left two voicemail messages for her on 6 and 10 May, and in one of the messages, he said: "I am going to go on gently knocking at your door in order to shake your hand, I am not giving up." Sentencing Brandt, Judge William Mousley KC said: "I am satisfied that there is a real risk of you reoffending or causing harm to other people." He said it was clear that Brandt's behaviour had a "very significant and enduring impact" on Dame Penny. Read more from Sky News:Uganda election descends into deadly violenceWest Midlands Police chief retires after Maccabi fan ban row Brandt, who had worked as a professional sailor and used to be a Tory councillor for East Hampshire District Council, told the court that he wanted to shake Dame Penny's hand, and that his intention was "entirely political and entirely harmless".

He was also sentenced for seven breaches of a stalking protection order in December 2025 by failing to notify police of devices capable of connecting to the internet and of the creation of accounts on Facebook and Snapchat. The stalking protection order is in place until November 2034.

Brandt was handed 12 weeks in jail over the stalking offence and another eight to serve consecutively for the breaches of the order..