Government-Linked Think Tank TARGETS Journalists
A Labour-linked think tank spent £36,000 of undisclosed funds to hire investigators who compiled deeply personal dossiers on journalists exposing the organization’s financial secrets, raising alarm about government attacks on press freedom.
Story Snapshot
- Labour Together paid PR firm Apco Worldwide £36,000 in 2023 to investigate journalists reporting on over £700,000 in undeclared donations
- The investigation included false personal smears against Sunday Times journalist Gabriel Pogrund, references to his Jewish background, and baseless claims linking sources to Kremlin hacks
- Cabinet Office Minister Josh Simons commissioned the probe while heading the think tank, sharing findings with government ministers and advisers in 2024
- Cross-party lawmakers demand Prime Minister Starmer launch an independent inquiry into the “creepy spy scandal” threatening fundamental press freedoms
Labour Think Tank’s Secret Investigation Targets Reporters
Labour Together, the influential think tank that propelled Keir Starmer to party leadership in 2020, commissioned a covert investigation into journalists who exposed the organization’s failure to declare £730,000 in donations between 2017 and 2020. Cabinet Office Minister Josh Simons authorized the £36,000 contract with Apco Worldwide in 2023 while serving as the think tank’s director. The resulting report allegedly contained false accusations and deeply personal information about reporters from The Sunday Times, The Guardian, and Declassified UK. Labour Together maintains close ties to the government, with several cabinet ministers serving as directors, amplifying concerns about state-adjacent entities targeting the free press.
Personal Smears and Baseless Foreign Interference Claims
The Apco investigation specifically targeted Gabriel Pogrund, identifying him as the Sunday Times journalist behind donation exposure stories. According to reports, the dossier included gratuitous references to Pogrund’s Jewish heritage and unsubstantiated allegations that his sources originated from a Kremlin-linked hack of Electoral Commission data. No evidence supports the foreign interference claim. Simons stated he was “shocked” by the extent of personal details included and claimed he removed such information before referring security concerns to GCHQ. However, the fact that a government minister commissioned surveillance of journalists exercising their constitutional duty to hold power accountable represents a fundamental threat to First Amendment-equivalent press protections that conservatives recognize as essential to preventing government overreach and tyranny.
Pattern of Financial Secrecy and Electoral Violations
Labour Together’s investigation came after the Electoral Commission fined the organization £14,250 in September 2021 for failing to properly declare donations totaling over £730,000. The think tank self-referred the violations after journalists began scrutinizing its opaque funding structure. Rather than embracing transparency following the penalty, Labour Together spent donor money to identify and intimidate the reporters exposing its financial mismanagement. This mirrors the kind of accountability-dodging that frustrates everyday citizens who play by the rules while political elites operate above them. The organization’s continued influence over government policy, despite documented law-breaking, exemplifies the two-tiered system where connected insiders face minimal consequences for behavior that would destroy ordinary people’s livelihoods.
Bipartisan Demands for Independent Investigation
Conservative Party Chairman Kevin Hollinrake wrote to Labour Chair Anna Turley demanding a full investigation into Simons and suspension of all Labour Party ties with Labour Together, calling the probe evidence of “worrying contempt for the free press, which is fundamental to democracy.” Reform UK’s Nadhim Zahawi questioned whether Prime Minister Starmer knew about the journalist targeting. Even Labour backbenchers including John McDonnell, secretary of the National Union of Journalists parliamentary group, called the allegations “unacceptable if true” and demanded an independent inquiry. SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn urged Starmer to sack Simons over the “creepy spy scandal.” The cross-party consensus reflects recognition that government-adjacent organizations investigating journalists threaten everyone’s liberty, regardless of political affiliation.
Chilling Effect on Investigative Journalism and Government Accountability
The revelation that Labour-connected entities compile intelligence files on journalists creates a chilling precedent that could discourage future investigations into government and political party finances. When reporters face personal smears, false accusations of foreign ties, and surveillance for exposing financial wrongdoing, the fundamental check on government power erodes. Labour Together CEO Alison Phillips claimed she was “horrified” and insisted the organization never intended to investigate reporters, yet the £36,000 expenditure specifically commissioned such work. This disconnect between stated values and actual conduct exemplifies the hypocrisy that Americans across the political spectrum rightly reject. As pressure mounts on Starmer’s government amid concurrent scandals, the journalist targeting scandal underscores how quickly political movements claiming to champion transparency abandon those principles once in power.
Sources:
Starmer under fire over Labour think tank probe into journalists
Keir Starmer under fire over Labour think tank probe into journalists
Starmer urged to investigate links between government and ‘creepy spy scandal’
Labour think tank paid PR firm to investigate Declassified journalist