Cabinet Office ‘looking into’ claims of think tank-linked probe into journalists
The Technology Secretary described press freedom as “essential”, as she faced questions about the role of minister Josh Simons at the think tank Labour Together
The Cabinet Office will “be looking into” allegations that a prominent think tank paid for an investigation into journalists reporting on its funding, Liz Kendall has said.
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The Technology Secretary described press freedom as “essential”, as she faced questions about the role of minister Josh Simons at the think tank Labour Together.
Labour Together is said to have hired APCO Worldwide to investigate reporters from The Sunday Times, The Guardian and other outlets to identify their sources after stories about the think tank’s failure to declare more than £700,000 in donations.
The Sunday Times said APCO was paid £36,000 to carry out the investigation in 2023, when Mr Simons, now Labour MP for Makerfield, ran the think tank.
The Democracy For Sale newsletter previously published similar allegations.
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“Personally, and as a Government as a whole, we absolutely value the freedom of the press,” Ms Kendall said.
She later added: “It’s right that this issue is being investigated by the relevant body here, the regulatory body, which is looking at public affairs companies.
“And the Cabinet Office will also be looking into this to make sure all the facts are established.”
Asked whether Mr Simons’ position – as a minister in her department and also the Cabinet Office – was “tenable”, Ms Kendall added: “He has welcomed the investigation, rightly so, by the regulatory body, the body responsible for regulating public affairs.
“As I said, the Cabinet Office will also be looking into the facts of this case, but it is absolutely essential that we protect the freedom of the press.”
According to The Sunday Times, APCO’s probe resulted in a 58-page report, which included details designed to discredit reporters who had investigated campaign finance breaches by Labour Together.
The think tank was fined £14,250 in September 2021 over late reporting of donations, totalling £730,000 between 2017 and 2020, after referring itself to the Electoral Commission.
Ben Taylor, The Sunday Times’s editor, said: “When the report came in, Labour Together people, some of whom are now in the Cabinet, were quite happy to talk about its conclusions widely around Westminster, claim that the Sunday Times was being used by the Russian state to run disobliging stories about Labour and, frankly, cast doubt on both the title and its reporters in the run up to the general election.
“I would like some honesty from people at Labour Together.”
Claims that the newspaper was being used by a foreign state were “absurd”, he said.
He said senior Labour Together-linked figures, including ministers, “need to be honest about what the motivations of this were”.
He continued: “But crucially, when the report landed, why was it that our reporters around Westminster were then subject to a whispering campaign about their motivations?”