Keir Starmer comes out swinging in opposition to Nigel Farage after ex-Reform heavyweight jailed
Keir Starmer has said Nigel Farage is not ‘fit to lead our country’ after an ex-close ally of the Reform UK leader was jailed for accepting pro-Russian bribes
Keir Starmer has said Nigel Farage is not “fit to lead our country” after an ex-close ally of the Reform UK leader was jailed for accepting pro-Russian bribes.
The Prime Minister said the 10-and-a-half-year jail sentence for Nathan Gill was “shocking” and called on Mr Farage to set up an inquiry into his party.
Speaking to broadcasters at the G20 summit, Mr Starmer demanded the Clacton MP get up today and answer how this happened on his watch.
“I think that that demands that Nigel Farage investigate how that happened within his party, and equally importantly, what other links there are between his party and Russia, and that needs that,” he told the BBC.
“In fact, he should get up today. He’s usually got plenty to say and say, in light of this shocking result, with a long prison sentence to see how serious it is undermining our interests as a country, he should set up an inquiry, an investigation into his home party.
READ MORE: Former Reform UK heavyweight Nathan Gill jailed for accepting Russian bribes
“How did that happen on his watch, in his party, and what other links are there between his party and Russia? That’s what he should do.”
Mr Starmer also slammed Mr Farage for failing to show leadership in tackling racism after not taking action against Reform MP Sarah Pochin’s “clearly racist” comments.
Asked if Farage is fit to be PM, he told GB News: “Anybody who fails to call out racism, anyone who is pro Russia is not fit to lead our country. But he must start that investigation. This is a serious prison sentence, 10 years for that involvement with pro Russian, pro Russian bribes. He needs to launch an investigation. How did that happen in his party? And what other links are in his party?”
Gill, 52, admitted eight counts of bribery after taking thousands of pounds to deliver scripted speeches and push a pro-Russian agenda on TV when he was an MEP.
The disgraced former UKIP and Brexit Party politician accepted the cash from tycoon Oleg Voloshyn – branded a “pawn” of the Russian security services by the US government, the Old Bailey heard.
Counter terrorism officers discovered WhatsApps between Gill and pro-Russian Ukrainian politician Voloshyn revealing their illegal dealings after he was stopped at Manchester Airport in 2021.
Jailing him for 10-and-a-half years, Judge Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said he had committed a “grave betrayal” of those who elected him.
She said: “You abused the position of significant authority and trust with your crimes spanning eight months, motivated by financial and political gain. The offending was sophisticated. You accepted payments from foreign nationals, made statements on important international matters on their behest…
“Your conduct fundamentally compromised the integrity of a supranational legislative body, particularly in its dealings with Russia, a persistently hostile state during a period of an association agreement between the EU and Ukraine reached in 2017.”
The court also heard he promised to bring fellow Brexit Party MPs to a presentation by Vladimir Putin ally Victor Medvedchuk, who he publicly spoke up for.
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey responded: “A traitor was at the very top of Reform UK, aiding and abetting a foreign adversary. Nigel Farage and his party are a danger to national security.”
He called for a full investigation into Russian interference in our politics. And armed forces minister Al Carns demanded Reform launched a thorough investigation – branding Gill’s actions “a disgrace”.
He said: “I just think wherever we see Russian influence in UK politics, it’s got to be weeded out. I fought for this country for 24 years, across all over the world, and I’ve seen my friends be injured or killed in combat.
“To take money from an autocratic regime that is causing thousands of casualties on an unprecedented scale is unacceptable, and we must weed it out.”
Prosecutor Mark Heywood KC told the court a “long sequence” of messages started in September 2018.
These showed Gill agreed to make introductions in the European Parliament, as well as discussing “enlisting the support of several MEPs”.
Mr Heywood told the court: “There is clear evidence of agreements to act in a particular way, or to a particular script, for sums of money.” He went on to reveal that Voloshyn referred to payments as “Xmas gifts” in messages.
The prosecutor said Gill’s actions fell into the “highest category” of culpability, stating: “We observe that Mr Gill was not just the elected member of a parliament, but of a supra-national parliament of significance, comprising many nation states.
“He agreed to take financial payments from a foreign national operating outside that region according to interest, not only of himself and others with him, but also palpably, other foreign interests lying behind his own. The indictment offending spanned a series of months and arguably came to an end at a time when it was obvious that his involvement, his role as a member of the European Parliament was either at or soon to be at an end.
“It appears from the material that Mr Gill was expecting to receive the order of several thousand, perhaps £5,000 or euros, in respect of each offence. He was to do so in cash, but he was to do so clandestinely.”
Gill was elected as a UKIP, and later Brexit Party, MEP between 2014 and 2020. He was leader of UKIP Wales between 2014 and 2016 – while Mr Farage was the national leader.
The Reform UK leader has described Gill as a “bad apple” – and said he was “shocked” after he admitted bribery.
Gill went on to become leader of Reform UK Wales between March and May 2021. He led the party’s Senedd/Welsh Parliament election campaign – but has not been a member since 2021.
Following the sentencing hearing, Security Minister, Dan Jarvis, said: “Nathan Gill used his privileged position in public office to advance the malign interests of Russia over those of the UK in exchange for money – that is a betrayal of our country, our people, and our national security.
“He will now face the consequences of his actions. This week, I announced comprehensive action to disrupt and deter interference from foreign states. Russia’s hostility and attempts to weaken our democracy will continue to be met by the full force of the law.”
A Reform UK spokesman said: “Mr Gill’s actions were reprehensible, treasonous and unforgivable. We are glad that justice has been served and fully welcome the sentence Nathan Gill has received.”
Peter Wright KC, defending Gill, said: “He recognises, and did by his guilty pleas, the enormity of what he has done and the betrayal of the trust placed in him and on his behalf by others to behave with integrity, and that he has let them and himself down.”
He continued: “Before I embark on matters of general mitigation in order, I hope, to quell what may be a degree of speculation within the media or the public generally by any reference to any leading figure in the party that was featured in any of these messages. We would submit clearly that any such figure was never the subject of any proposition, nor indeed of any agreement of any sort.”
The shamed politician, from Anglesey, North Wales, used a parliamentary speech in 2018 to defend TV channels 112 Ukraine and NewsOne, which are linked to Vladimir Putin ally Viktor Medvedchuk.
