Today ex-Reform UK politician Nathan Gill became the first British politician to be sentenced for bribery in a landmark corruption case that has lifted the lid on the vulnerability of our politics to foreign influence operations.
Gill was sentenced to 10 and a half years in prison by Justice Cheema-Grubb at the Old Bailey after admitting he took bribes in exchange for making pro-Russia speeches in the European Parliament in 2018 and 2019 when he was a member of the Brexit Party. Prosecutors relied on Gill’s WhatsApp exchanges with Oleg Voloshyn, a former Ukrainian government official described by the US as a “pawn” of Russia’s security service, with the pair using “xmas gifts” and “post cards” as codewords for cash payments as a reward for the UK politician giving pro-Russia media interviews and speeches.
The pro-Russian architect and source of bribes to UK politician
In her sentencing remarks, Justice Cheema-Grubb described Voloshyn as the “architect” of the bribes while identifying pro-Kremlin Ukrainian politician Victor Medvedchuk as the “ultimate source of the requests and the money” that Gill received.
The sentencing judge assessed Gill’s offending to be on the highest level of culpability and harm with “scant personal mitigation”. She set out in detail how Gill took bribes in exchange for using “scripted material” – given to him by Voloshyn and praised by Medvedchuk – and emphasised that this wrongdoing was compounded by having “enlisted other British MEPs” to adopt the same line. The Crown did not assert in this case that these MEPs knew about Gill’s financial motivation.
Gill’s conduct was described as an “egregious abuse” of his “position of significant authority and trust” that was “motivated by financial and political gain”. His actions “fundamentally compromised the integrity of a supra-national legislative body, particularly in its dealings with Russia, a persistently hostile state” and “erodes public confidence in democracy”.
In justifying the lengthy sentence, Justice Cheema-Grubb emphasised that “the law will respond to such breaches with stern punishment” to deter bribery which is “a malignancy at the heart of public life”.
The urgent need to shore up our defences against foreign influence
This case should be a real wake-up call about the very real threat of malign actors undermining our democratic politics by corrupting our elected officials, and the urgency of taking action to protect our politics from foreign influence.
The government has a Defending Democracy Taskforce – which is charged with protecting us from this kind of foreign influence operation – but we know almost nothing about its work or the scale of the problem it faces. Today’s case exposing a pro-Russian influence campaign and the recent collapse of the China spy trial underscores the need for the government to come clean about the level of foreign interference in our democratic politics.
While the Met’s Counter-Terrorism Command stepped up to investigate the serious bribery offences by Gill in this case, it is essential that the government ensures there is a properly resourced law enforcement agency with a dedicated mandate to tackle corruption and foreign interference in our politics.
Our comment to the media
Helen Taylor, Deputy Director of Spotlight on Corruption, said:
“Police and prosecutors should be congratulated for securing the first-ever conviction of a UK politician for bribery and in doing so ensuring that Gill faces meaningful accountability for his betrayal of public trust. The stiff sentence handed down by the judge will hopefully prove to be a deterrent for others who might be tempted to abuse their position in public office for personal or political gain.
“As this case and the recent abortive China spy trial demonstrate, the UK is a soft target for foreign influence operations. At a time when there are rock bottom levels of UK public trust in politicians, the government needs to come clean with the public about the level of the threat and set out what it intends to do to protect our democracy from the predations of hostile powers.”
Background
- Nathan Gill pleaded guilty to eight out of nine counts under the Bribery Act, admitting receiving financial advantages in the form of money between December 2018 and July 2019 which constituted “improper performance” of his role as an elected official (as an MEP).
- Gill was first arrested four years ago at Manchester Airport. Prosecutors highlighted Whatsapp messages between Gill and Voloyshyn who was a Ukrainian government official under former President Yanukovych – the pro-Russian president of Ukraine who was ousted twice by major protests and fled to Russia in 2013. Voloyshyn was considered to be a pawn of Russia’s secret service by the US government and sanctioned by the US in 2022. He has also been suspected of treason by the Ukrainian authorities.
- Nation.Cymru revealed in 2023 that Gill had been on multiple trips organised by people suspected of being Russian agents, including Ukraine and Moldova.
