Labour minister at centre of journalist smear scandal faces calls to step down
A Labour minister accused of paying a PR firm to smear journalists was put on notice on Monday after his own department began looking into the scandal.
Josh Simons is facing calls to step down from his ministerial role in the Cabinet Office while it ‘establishes the facts’ about the controversial probe he launched while in charge of think-tank Labour Together.
However, Downing Street insisted that Sir Keir Starmer – who said he was unaware of the attempt to discredit two Sunday Times journalists – still had confidence in him.
On Monday night Conservative Party Chairman Kevin Hollinrake said: ‘Josh Simons must now recuse himself from his role as the minister with responsibility for inquiries policy while he is being investigated by the Cabinet Office. We must also see the terms of reference for the inquiry and know who is leading it.
‘The Labour Party must also investigate and review its ongoing relationship with Labour Together in light of these very serious accusations.’
And Liberal Democrat Cabinet Office spokesman Lisa Smart said: ‘I’m appalled by reports of smear tactics by a party that promised to make politics cleaner than clean. It looks like the group that credits itself with getting Labour into government has carried out an outrageous attack on our independent free Press.
‘Josh Simons should temporarily step down as Cabinet Office minister while the investigation takes place to avoid any conflict of interest.’
Before becoming an MP in 2024, Mr Simons was director of the think-tank credited with helping Sir Keir win the Labour leadership.
Josh Simons (pictured) is facing calls to step down from his ministerial role in the Cabinet Office
It has now emerged that in late 2023 he commissioned a US public affairs firm called APCO to find out how The Sunday Times had discovered that Labour Together had failed to declare £730,000 of donations to the Labour Party.
Its eventual report, which cost the think-tank £36,000, is said to have portrayed two reporters as part of a Russian campaign to sabotage Sir Keir’s reputation and included pages of deeply personal and false claims about one of them, Gabriel Pogrund.
On Monday, Technology Secretary Liz Kendall revealed that the Cabinet Office was now examining the case.
She told the BBC: ‘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.’
Asked if he would launch an investigation, Sir Keir said: ‘There will be a Cabinet Office investigation into the allegations, and quite right, too. I didn’t know anything about this investigation, and it absolutely needs to be looked into, so the Cabinet Office will be establishing the facts.’
His official spokesman later assured reporters the PM does have confidence in Mr Simons.
It is understood the probe will be carried out by the Propriety and Ethics team, whose responsibilities include ‘providing advice to the Prime Minister and Cabinet Secretary on maintaining the highest standards of propriety and ethics across all government departments’.
