Minister Faces Cross-Party Calls for Resignation After Falsely Accusing Journalists of Russian Ties

A Cabinet Office minister is facing mounting pressure from across the political spectrum to resign after The Guardian revealed he had falsely accused journalists of having links to Russian intelligence.

Josh Simons, who previously ran the Labour Together thinktank, is already subject to a departmental ethics inquiry following allegations that he pressed national security officials to investigate journalists who had published a story critical of the organization he led.

According to emails obtained by The Guardian, Simons and a subordinate contacted the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), a unit of GCHQ, in January and February 2024, claiming that journalists had obtained information about Labour Together through a Russian hack. Simons specifically told officials that one journalist was “living with” the daughter of a former adviser to Jeremy Corbyn, who he claimed was “suspected of links to Russian intelligence.”

The investigation has revealed these accusations were unfounded. The information used in the original Sunday Times story about Labour Together’s failure to disclose political donations came from files leaked by whistleblowers within the Labour Party, not from any hack. The NCSC had already determined that while the Electoral Commission had been hacked, it was by China, not Russia, and involved electoral records rather than regulatory correspondence.

Conservative Party Chair Kevin Hollinrake has called for Simons’ suspension and an independent inquiry, stating: “The Cabinet Office cannot be left to mark its own homework.” Hollinrake emphasized the seriousness of the situation given Simons’ ministerial responsibility for government inquiries and whistleblowing.

Labour backbencher Jon Trickett went further, demanding Prime Minister Keir Starmer dismiss Simons, describing his actions as “reprehensible behaviour reminiscent of the dirty tricks that were used by Richard Nixon’s White House during the Watergate scandal.”

Liberal Democrat Cabinet Office spokesperson Lisa Smart also suggested Simons should consider his position, criticizing the disconnect between the government’s promise of clean politics and a minister “whose previous spin tactics literally involved reporting journalists to the intelligence agencies.”

The controversy stems from a Sunday Times story published in 2023 that revealed details about £730,000 of undeclared donations to Labour Together. At the time, the thinktank was run by Morgan McSweeney, a close adviser to Starmer. The Electoral Commission had fined the organization more than £14,000 for failing to declare the donations.

In response, Simons commissioned American public affairs agency Apco to investigate the Sunday Times journalists and their sources. Based on Apco’s report, Simons falsely concluded that the information came from a hack of the Electoral Commission. He subsequently informed the NCSC that “our evidence” showed the information had been “disseminated to people known to be operating in a pro-Kremlin propaganda network with links to Russian intelligence.”

One person named in Labour Together’s communications to the NCSC described Simons’ actions as a “McCarthyite smear” campaign, while another called the false accusation “disturbing, creepy and deplorable.”

Freelance journalist Paul Holden, who provided the Sunday Times with documents for their original report, has since shared his source materials with The Guardian. These materials indicate the story was based on files leaked by whistleblowers within the Labour Party, contradicting Simons’ claims of Russian involvement.

A spokesperson for Josh Simons responded to the allegations by stating: “Labour Together commissioned Apco to investigate the information Paul Holden obtained for his book, as has repeatedly been made clear.”

As the ethics inquiry continues, the controversy raises serious questions about the boundaries of political operations and the targeting of journalists by those in positions of power.