Permission was sought from the editor to go the club and speak to her. Three named directors are Richard Glasspool, a former partner at KPMG Russia and former head of the risk committee of the Credit Bank of Moscow, run by Putin-friendly oligarch Roman Avdeev; Kirill Glukhovskoy, formerly a senior lawyer with major Russian energy companies according to the Aquind website; and oligarch Alexander Temerko. Firtashs closeness to the Kremlin, his association with Trump consigliere-turned-convict Paul Manafort and his arrest warrant issued by the FBI are facts that can be reported and cannot be denied. To complete the set, Firtashs charity front, the Firtash Foundation, had Jack Wakefield as a director for a time. In 2014, he fired its editor, Galina Timchenko, after she published an interview with a Ukrainian nationalist. [7], The group's neutrality and support was questioned by the media, despite the group stating no political links or bias to Russia and made it clear that its funding comes from membership and events, by publishing its financial accounts. [24][25], Symonds became the Conservative Party's head of communications in 2018,[26] but left the position later that year,[17] taking up a job in public relations for the Oceana project. Direct party funding is only the tip of the iceberg. Despite describing itself as a think tank, no published research exists, and they are likely more akin to a lobbying group. Tymofienko is now working on an 800,000 scheme promoting intellectual property in Ukraine at QMC London funded by the British Government. She apologised and paid the penalty. The WRF, which loudly echoes official lines from Moscow, has links with numerous Conservative MPs and other senior UK political figures. Boris Johnson to marry fiancee Carrie Symonds in July 2022, report says [6][7] She began an affair with Johnson, then Foreign Secretary, in 2018 while he was still married to his second wife, Marina Wheeler. Union leader urges Health Secretary not to be disrespectful to striking nurses, Union boss hits out over criticism of strike on eve of Eurovision, Start-up backed by Sunaks wife given government grant, Celtic fans sing you can shove your coronation up your a***, Elevenses: Maybe its because were little Englanders, Elevenses: Exposing the Tories Deepfake Illegal Immigration Bill, Elevenses: Fear and Loathing in the New Conservatives, The Queen supports Black Lives Matter, royal aide reveals, YouTubers, Influencers and Internet Stars: The Content Creation economy, PMs wrap to Committee *I got under 21 mins before Dom has got to go*, Watch Boris Johnson on WTO terms theres a clarity and a simplicity in that approach, Imagine the wedding present list! UPDATE (9 March 2022): This article has been amended at the request of Ernest Reid to clarify his role within the WRF. The Covid-19 public inquiry is a historic chance to find out what really happened. Chernukhins husband served as a Russian minister in 2000, during Putins first presidential term. The inquiry, which the Bow Group says should be "independent of the Government and the Conservative Party", needed to consider the specific role Ms Symonds plays in Downing Street, details of . The Tory peer received a bonus of $4m (3.14m) after helping Deripaska get the company removed from a list of firms hit by US sanctions. History. Dont miss a story! But his return to the frontbench might be explained by the fact that his one-time special advisor was Carrie Symonds, the Prime Ministers partner and mother of his fifth or sixth child. The exemption has been granted because they would be at risk of serious violence or intimidation if their identity was published. [14][15][16], Caroline Louise Beavan Symonds was born on 17 March 1988 to Matthew Symonds, co-founder of The Independent, and Josephine McAfee (ne Lawrence), a lawyer working for that newspaper. Osborne listed the various economic models that could form the basis for Brexit the Canadian model, the Norwegian model, the Albanian model before adding that was enough about Mr Whittingdales relationships. She paid 135,000 in April 2019 for a dinner at the luxury Goring hotel with Theresa May, also then the PM, and several female cabinet members. Carrie Symonds trashes rumours she is getting rid of dog Dilyn - Yahoo! He introduced him to the prime minister, David Cameron. In 2017, Deripaska listed his En+ energy and metals group on the London Stock Exchange and turned to Lord Barker to serve as its chairman. [13] Symonds married Johnson in 2021. The same day Amol Rajan was speaking at a Society of Editors conference. Ernest Reid, billed on the WRF website as its ambassador at large, has provided commentary for Russia Today and the WRF sympathetic to Russian foreign ministry objectives. In January 2020, Whittingdale received 8,000 from Aquind Ltd, the mysterious Russia-linked company planning a billion-pound undersea electricity grid connector between Britain and France which wont reveal the identity of the party that controls it. He was subsequently photographed in the company of the then Foreign Secretary at a fundraising event in Reading. It also subsidised its members to attend an event featuring international lawyers discussing the Pussy Riot incident, and hosted a debate on the US Presidential Election and its impact upon the relationship between the two countries. Mamut replaced her with a pro-Kremlin journalist. ", "A question for Boris Johnson and Carrie Symonds: what is wrong with John Lewis? With MPs less likely to speak at the group in recent years, the WRF has turned its focus to working on public opinion. By Anne McElvoy. However, an investment company run by a close colleague did take part in the privatisation of Alrosa diamond mines. He has made a fortune of close to 1bn by founding dating apps, including the female-focused Bumble and Badoo. We scrambled so hard to get our BBC Newsnight story on that night, running the extraordinary statement drafted by Carrie Symonds, that I mispronounced dominatrix much to the amusement of then-editor Ian Katz. Alexander Lebedev bought the loss-making Evening Standard newspaper in 2009, installing his son Evgeny as proprietor. Boris Johnson, Carrie Symonds are engaged and will have a baby - The The friendship has . That same month, Tymofienko was photographed with another ex-Soviet oligarch, Alexander Temerko, and Conservative minister Philip Hammond at the Tory Party conference in Birmingham. Read More All have homes in London, with several visiting regularly from Moscow. Though Conservative Friends of Russia was subsequently disbanded, Nalobin seems to have established some key Conservative contacts before he left the country under a shadow. The Kremlins attempts tointervene continue. (Matt Dunham/AP) LONDON British . Event attendees have included Carrie Johnson, the Conservative Partys former head of communications and now the prime ministers wife. Carrie Johnson: Age, job, children & everything else to know | Marie Lucas, a journalist who was involved in calls to dissolve the Conservative Friends of Russia in 2013, has called its return a mushroom sprouting on top of a compost heap. According to CNN, the evidence of Bill Browder, the campaigner behind the anti-corruption Magnitsky Acts, suggests that Russias President, Vladimir Putin, has deployed Russians to infiltrate UK society and to conceal the underlying Russian controllers and their agendas. Given the weight of evidence, these are reasonable inquiries. She subsequently worked in marketing. The connections between Putins anti-EU agenda and Brexit politicians go much deeper. The Israeli-Russian billionaire has limited UK business interests outside football, but his extensive property portfolio includes a 15-bedroom mansion in Londons prestigious Kensington Palace Gardens, bought for 90m in 2011. In recent years, Lebedev has come under scrutiny over his close personal ties with Boris Johnson. Sergey Nalobin once jokingly described himself on Twitter as a brutal agent of the Putin dictatorship. [13] Their son, Wilfred Lawrie Nicholas Johnson, was born on 29 April 2020 in London. Media advisor and wife of former British prime minister Boris Johnson, For other people named Carrie Johnson, see, GRO Register of Births = MAR 1988 15 449 WANDSWORTH - Caroline Louise B. Symonds, mother's maiden name = Lawrence. Another rich oligarch born in the Soviet Union, Alexander Temerko, has contributed more than 1 million to the Conservatives since he gained British citizenship in 2011 and also financed Johnsons leadership campaign. Russias foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova went to his Moscow book launch. Westminster Russia Forum (WRF) was[1] a UK-wide voluntary organisation, which aims to promote improved relations with Russia. Jim Cusick then reported on Byline how his former editor at The Independent, Amol Rajan, had killed the story. Russian Ambassador's planned meeting with UK MPs and peers in A few miles across north London lies Arsenal Football Club, in which the Uzbek-born Russian metals, mining and publishing billionaire Alisher Usmanov was a long-time shareholder even at one time considering a full takeover. It is clear in retrospect that the Russian attempt to intervene in British politics was a two-pronged affair. Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, 2023 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. Greg Barker, a former Conservative minister, has worked for the Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. Ask George Osborne, Craig Oliver or Carrie Symonds. On October 19 2015 Mistress Kate was scheduled to work at the London Retreat [her dungeon]. [9], The group's Board lost all of its Conservative MPs amid allegations of being too close to the Russian authorities and it was rebranded as the Westminster Russia Forum, a non-partisan group, which claims to promote an open platform to debate various issues such as international diplomacy, energy security and internal political systems. Westminster Russia Forum - Wikipedia Guests included Conservative activists such as future Vote Leave chief Matthew Elliott. The Independent was a tenant of Associated Newspapers and the Mail group, Cusick suggested, liked Whittingdales policy of not implementing the full Leveson reforms on Fleet Street. We also introduce new voices of colour in Our Lives Matter. Byline Times is funded by its subscribers. The PR executive and former Ulster Unionist MP David Burnside has introduced several prominent Kremlin figures to senior Conservatives. RT @WriterJackWhite: In 2012 Johnson's "great friend" later expelled FSB spy Sergei Nalobin who attended the launch party of Conservative Friends of Russia with Harry Cole, & Vote Leave's Jag Singh, Carrie Symonds, John Whittingdale (& possibly Dominic Cummings & Matthew Elliott) arranged a 10 visit Back in April 2016, Whittingdales adventurous private life was the subject of a joke by then Chancellor George Osborne in a speech to the parliamentary lobby. [38], Symonds married Boris Johnson on 29 May 2021 in a secret ceremony at Westminster Cathedral attended by thirty guests. Whittingdales love-in with Firtash is a sorry tale. Like many others,. New to Byline Times? ", The statement concludes:"We are aware that to some our views on promoting dialogue may appear strange but we are committed to doing what we can to promoting grassroots understanding and peace.". Conservative Friends of Russia held its 2012 launch party in the Russian ambassador's Kensington garden, with about 250 Russian and British guests present, including Tories who went on to. The then foreign secretary left his security detail behind and was spotted at the airport on his way home, dishevelled and hungover. Revealed: Boris, the Russian oligarch and the Page 3 model The real problem is the Russian influence operation in the serious think tanks, [in] the City of London, and [in] the large amounts of money being made by bankers, lawyers and accountants who focus on pushing the Russian regime, including by donating large amounts of money to political parties.. We support the people of Ukraine and continue to stand with the people of Russia this war is not in their name and we will continue to support them in their time of need.. In contrast to Temerko, Chernukhin keeps a low public profile. Shortly afterwards, Sir Malcolm Rifkind, who had served as a minister under Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher and John Major, and was then chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee, resigned from the group, saying he had been unhappy for some time about the group's behaviour and "political direction". [58], In February 2022, Carrie Johnson's spokeswoman denied that Johnson has influence over her husband amidst allegations from Tory peer Lord Ashcroft, who had written an unauthorised biography of her. The following year, Burnside invited Vasily Shestakov, an influential MP in Russias Duma, to the same Tory fundraising dinner. Boris Johnson's partner could make history by moving into 10 Downing Street", "Boris Johnson's partner 'left 80k Tory HQ job over unauthorised expense claims', "The Londoner: Tory staffers rally behind Carrie Symonds", "PM's row with Lynton Crosby over briefings against girlfriend Carrie Symonds", "John Worboys: Victim Carrie Symonds' story", "Carrie Symonds: It's such a relief to know John Worboys will stay in prison", "What drives First Fiance Carrie Symonds, asks Freddy Gray", "Carrie Symonds, girlfriend of British PM Boris Johnson, has been denied a visa to the US", "Carrie Symonds to carry out first solo event since Boris Johnson became PM at 'birdwatchers' Glastonbury', "Carrie Symonds warns politicians of 'gigantic' climate crisis responsibility", "Boris Johnson and Carrie Symonds name baby boy Wilfred Lawrie Nicholas Johnson after doctors who saved PM's life", "Italian airport quashes claims of secret Boris Johnson trip", "Everything we know about Carrie Symonds' wedding look", "Carrie Symonds wears a boho-organza tiered white gown and flower crown for a wedding with Boris Johnson", "Carrie Johnson and Boris Johnson expecting second child", "Boris and Carrie Johnson announce birth of a girl", "Romy Iris Charlotte: Boris Johnson and Carrie name their baby daughter", "Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak reject calls to resign over lockdown fines", "Court to probe Carrie Symonds' influence on PM after cancellation of badger cull", "Lee Cain: Johnson's senior aide resigns amid infighting at No 10", "Carrie Symonds' influence at No 10 extends much further than the decor", "How could Boris and Carrie's Downing St refurbishment cost 200,000? She left the role shortly before it was publicly revealed she was dating Boris Johnson. Prior to . She's only 31, and plugged into a rising generation of hyper-ambitious millennials. It is high time that these groups were brought out of the shadows, properly regulated, and that the public are able to have far greater insight into how they operate and who is behind them.. For Ms. Symonds, a former Conservative Party communications chief who now works for an animal-rights group, it is the latest trial in a year overstuffed with dramatics: the near-fatal illness of . Caroline Louise Beavan Johnson[3][4][5] (ne Symonds; born 17 March 1988) is a British media consultant and the wife of former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson. SWEENEY INVESTIGATES From Russia With Leave The Curious Case of John Exclusive: The group, once called Conservative Friends of Russia, is set to hold a multilateral relations conference next week despite Russia invading Ukraine, The Westminster Russia Forum loudly echoes official lines from Moscow. She was a similar age and lived close to me. There is always an in-crowd of top-notch aides and these days, they range from Josh Grimstone, 28, the photogenic, waspish protg of Carrie Symonds, now an adviser to Michael Gove.Grimstone's . According to its chairman, Dominic Grieve, Boris Johnson personally blocked for bogus reasons the imminent publication of a cross-party report on Russia meddling in UK politics by Parliaments Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC). In 2014, Whittingale was photographed in Ukrainian fancy dress in London with Maria Tymofienko, who styled herself in emails as Assistant to John WhittingdaleMP Chair All-Party ParliamentaryGroup on Ukraine. Oliver continued: When Caroline Preston, No 10s head of broadcast, hears us talking about the Albanian model she jokes: Oh no! pamela.sammons on Twitter: "It does indeed, most relevant given his Our leading investigations include: empire & the culture war,Brexit, crony contracts,Russian interference,the Coronavirus pandemic,democracy in danger, andthe crisis in British journalism. [19][20], Symonds was the result of an affair between her parents, who were both married to other people at the time. I feel so angry that he pleaded not guilty and made us go through the pain of giving evidence in court". He admitted to being behind early plots to remove Theresa May. Westminster Russia Forum (WRF) was a UK-wide voluntary organisation, which aims to promote improved relations with Russia. One of Londons most successful Russian businessmen is Andrey Andreev. [45] An association representing farmers, the NFU, asserted that this meeting and her influence played a key role in the government ignoring scientific advice in favour of retaining the cull. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Whittingdale was for a time a director of the BUS, as was DFs former CEO, Robert Shetler-Jones. Fund a better media. In February, Chernukhin spent 45,000 on another game of tennis with Johnson and Ben Elliot, the Tories co-chair. Nalobin, who now lives in a Moscow apartment block known as the FSB block, is the son of Nikolai Nalobin, a former KGB general. [54], Conservative MP Caroline Nokes asserted that Carrie Johnson's influence has been exaggerated for sexist purposes;[53] she has been likened to both Lady Macbeth and Marie Antoinette ("Carrie Antoinette") by her critics. 23 Apr 2023 07:27:08 We only ask you to donate what you can afford, with an option to cancel your subscription at any point. There is also the prime. The mansion in Londons upmarket Highgate was bought for 50m in 2008 by the family of the Russian fertiliser baron Andrey Guryev, through an offshore company called Safran Holdings, located in the tax haven of the British Virgin Islands. Receive our monthly print edition and help to support fearless, independent journalism. Alexander Temerko said he was no friend of Vladimir Putin. [45] She was also influential in making sure that Lee Cain did not get a job as the prime minister's chief of staff,[46] and urged Boris Johnson to fire environment secretary George Eustice from his role. Whittingdale enjoyed 14,435 of free trips to Ukraine and Vienna paid for by the British Ukraine Society (BUS) which shared the same Knightsbridge address as the Firtash Foundation and the main Firtash entity, Group DF. He defended the donations in media interviews on Thursday. The minister responsible for answering appears to have a penchant for women from ex-Soviet states and is a recipient of money from a source with the same address as a pro-Kremlin oligarch. [21] She worked at Conservative Campaign Headquarters,[22] and later campaigned for Boris Johnson in the 2010 London Conservative Party mayoral selection. Byline Times put a series of questions to John Whittingdale, including questions on his apparent links with Firtash, whether he should repay the 14,435, who paid for Ms Tymofienkos services and/or expenses, and whether his private life has made him vulnerable to kompromat. He also sponsors the Baillie Gifford literature prize and is the main benefactor of multiple London museums and art galleries. This breach was referred to the National Crime Agency by the Information Commissioner, Elisabeth Denham. Had Russia paid for a social media campaign of this scale, the committee estimated, it would have cost between 1.4 and 4.14 million. [47] She was additionally involved in a political controversy over the refurbishment of the 11 Downing Street flat,[47] and her comments over the flat's decor being a "John Lewis furniture nightmare" (John Lewis typically being an aspirational, upper-middle-class shop) led to accusations of snobbery. In spring 2018, Johnson flew to the Lebedevs villa in Perugia, Italy. He co-authored an anti-EU book with an aide, Pavel Stroilov, who had allegedly fled Russia with smuggled secret Soviet documents. In fact, the press had been sniffing around another woman entirely, Natalia Lokhanova, a 30-year-old from Belarus when she had gone out with Whittingdale four years before and the daughter of a Soviet military officer. Meet the woman driving the Government's animal welfare policies - and Following a week in which Russia and its links to the UK have been in the news, the Guardian has looked into the impact of Soviet-born men and women on recent UK public life. In an interview with the Guardian, Temerko said he was no friend of Putins, whom he called an enemy of democracy. While direct contacts between Conservatives and Russian officials appear to have chilled when Nalobin was effectively expelled in 2015, intermediaries still made approaches. Tymofienko set up an interview with a Ukrainian television station for her boss. There is powerful evidence that the Russian propaganda machine, openly by such vehicles as RT and Sputnik, and covertly through anonymous bots, have interfered with Britains democracy. Temerko has funded the constituency associations of several leading Tory MPs, including the business secretary, Alok Sharma, and Mark Pritchard. Meanwhile, Lebedevs billionaire Moscow contemporary Alexander Mamut bought the bookshop chain Waterstones in 2011 for 53.5m. With senior staff from Vote Leave a campaign which benefited from the online operations of the Russian state during the Brexit referendum now running the Conservative Partys General Election campaign, the financial contributions of its wealthy oligarchs, and with many senior figures apparently personally compromised by past associations, the question remains: what else is in the ISC report that is more damaging than what we already know? Carrie Johnson went on to become communications director for The Conservative Party aged 29, on a rumoured annual salary of 80,000. A brief analysis of the data revealed that these accountstweeted about Brexit 1,525 times. Has he put himself in a position where he is vulnerable to the public perception that he is the Kremlins man? Deripaska attracted public attention in 2008 over claims that he discussed making a donation to the Tories with George Osborne, during a meeting held aboard his yacht in the Mediterranean. [51] Cummings also said that the prime minister "cancel[led] an inquiry about a leak because it might implicate his girlfriend's friends";[52] Cummings accused Henry Newman, the senior adviser in Downing Street and ally of Carrie Symonds, of being a "chatty rat" who leaked plans for a second lockdown in October. In 2014, Reuters reported on documents that pointed to Putin extending credit lines to Firtash of up to $11 billion which helped the oligarch influence the 2010 Presidential Election in Ukraine. Good reporters dont pry into other peoples bedrooms and Whittingdale has as much right to privacy as anyone. [23] Symonds was present when Whittingdale and others launched Conservative Friends of Russia (later called the Westminster Russia Forum and disbanded in March 2022) and has attended several of its meetings. Udod was invited to a drinks party hosted by Banks on the night of the shock EU Referendum result in June 2016. The 14 Tory ministers who have taken Russian-linked money One of the other billionaires behind AAR, Sir Leonard (Len) Blavatnik, also wields significant influence in the UK. The following month, she was barred from entering the United States as her visa application was rejected due to a previous visit with her close friend Nimco Ali to Somaliland, which the US considers to be part of immigration-restricted Somalia. [39][40] In July 2021, she announced that they were expecting their second child together, also revealing that she had suffered a miscarriage earlier that year. A group formerly known as the Conservative Friends of Russia (CRF) is advertising its first in-person conference for two years next week, despite Russias invasion of Ukraine on Thursday. Guests included the then Tory staffer Carrie Symonds (now the Prime Minister's wife) and senior Conservative politicians such as John Whittingdale. But that pales in comparison to the estimated price tag on Witanhurst, often referred to as Britains most expensive home. Whatever youre interested in, theres a free openDemocracy newsletter for you. The forums organisers are overwhelmingly London-based, with business interests in Russia. Fridman and Browne enjoy a longstanding business relationship that includes the foundation of TNK-BP, a joint venture involving British oil supermajor BP and a group of three billionaires, including Fridman, under the banner AAR. He later left Moscow and became a British citizen in 2011. Moreover, the report revealed how the Internet Research Agency, a Kremlin-backed St Petersburg-based troll farmindicted for election interference in the US, was simultaneously intervening in British politics, with a marked emphasis on stirring up Islamophobia and racial hatred. As reported on Byline Times last month, a Ukrainian born oligarch, Dmytro Firtash, currently awaiting extradition to the US, has extensive connections to both Putin, the Russian underworld and the British Brexit establishment, including John Whittingdale. Born in the Soviet Union, Chernukhin is the biggest female donor in British political history and one of the Tories most important cash supporters. "We are in no way funded by either government," he said, "receive no other support or direction, and are solely interested in promoting stronger trade, cultural and people to people ties. One of the groups initial organisers in 2011 was Sergei Nalobin, a diplomat suspected of being a Russian agent. New to Byline Times? Elements of the suppressed report have now leaked out. By the spring of 2016, four newspapers the Mirror, the Sun, the Mail on Sunday and The Independent had the story of Whittingdales extraordinary relationship with professional dominatrix Olivia King, also known as Mistress Kate, but had not run it. When Sibneft needed an international communications chief it turned to Greg Barker, who would go on to become Conservative energy minister under David Cameron.
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