𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Liz Kendall has said the Cabinet Office will “be looking into” allegations a Labour-linked think tank paid for an investigation into journalists. Ms Kendall, the Technology Secretary, described press freedom as “essential” while being grilled about the role of Government Minister Josh Simons at Labour Together, a think tank that supported Keir Starmer’s campaign to become Labour leader.

Labour Together hired public affairs firm APCO Worldwide to investigate reporters from The Sunday Times, The Guardian and other outlets, after the journalists investigated the think tank’s failure to declare more than £700,000 in donations. At the time, the think tank was run by Mr Simons – who is now Labour MP for Makerfield and a Government Minister. Conservatives have demanded Labour investigate the “alarming revelations”.The Sunday Times reported that APCO was paid £36,000 to carry out the investigation in 2023.

Ms Kendall said: “Personally, and as a Government as a whole, we absolutely value the freedom of the press.

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 told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “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.”

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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, told the BBC’s Today programme: “I would like some honesty from people at Labour Together.”

He said senior Labour Together-linked figures, including ministers, “need to be honest about what the motivations of this were”. Mr Taylor 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?”