The former leader of Reform UK in Wales, Nathan Gill, has been sentenced to 10 and a half years in prison for taking bribes to promote pro-Russian politicians and media outlets. Gill, 52, from Llangefni, Anglesey, accepted up to £40,000 from Oleg Voloshyn, a man closely connected to Viktor Medvedchuk, a former Ukrainian oligarch with ties to Vladimir Putin. Gill was a Member of the European Parliament at the time, and in return for money, he gave speeches in the European Parliament and interviews to the Ukrainian channel 112 Ukraine, echoing the Kremlin’s messaging.
At the Old Bailey, Justice Cheema-Grubb decreed that Gill had abused his position and eroded “public confidence in democracy.” Cheema-Grubb also noted that Gill had attempted to involve other MEPs in his activities.
Gill’s Russian links
Texts obtained by police revealed detailed coordination between Gill and Voloshyn, including instructions, scripts, and monetary promises to ensure compliance. As well as this, police recovered cash from Gill’s home and found evidence that he could have received up to £40,000 in total.
The investigation began after intelligence from multiple sources, including the FBI, flagged suspicious activity. In 2021, Gill was stopped at Manchester Airport while attempting to travel to Russia, and his phone was seized, containing messages showing ongoing collaboration with Voloshyn. The court heard that Gill continued taking bribes after leaving UKIP and joining the Brexit Party, eventually leading Reform UK in the 2021 Senedd election.
Reform UK have also condemned Gill’s actions as “reprehensible, treasonous and unforgivable.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has accused Gill of undermining the country’s interests and called on Nigel Farage to investigate whether others in the party had links to Russia. Law enforcement officials have confirmed that investigations into whether any other individuals were involved are ongoing.
The implications for Reform UK
In light of this case, there are now serious ramifications for Reform UK and British politics alike, for Gill not only was an elected representative of the people in the European Parliament, but a figure of authority within one of the fastest growing political parties in the UK. Currently Reform UK does not have significant support within Wales, with much of the party’s rhetoric centered around English nationalism, while Wales has its own hugely popular nationalist party Plaid Cymru. It was just last month that Plaid Cymru triumphed in the Caerphilly by-election, in what was widely expected to be a Reform UK win.
Although Reform UK have condemned Gill’s corrupt relationship with Russia, the question still remains as to how far Russia have been able to manipulate party policy within the Welsh division of Reform, potentially devastating party trust in Wales. If Reform wants to win the next general election with a considerable majority, Reform must now attempt to restore trust with Welsh voters. Gill was hardly a powerful political figure, but from this case doubts will undeniably now remain around Russian influence in British politics. If Reform UK is supposed to be a party for Britain, then the fact that a previous leader of a subsection of it is betraying British interests in favour of Russian ones is deeply worrying for the future state of politics in the UK.
Then again, Labour’s damnation of Reform for this is somewhat hypocritical, considering that ex-shadow minister and Labour MP Barry Gardiner was reportedly one of the recipients of £500,000 across six years from Christine Lee, a suspected Chinese spy connected to the Chinese Communist Party. Many would argue that Chinese influence within British politics is much more dangerous as well, as China are actively a threat to British security, whereas Russia is a nation that can be dealt with through the channels of NATO and negotiation, whereas China is a darkly malicious state that negotiation is less possible.
In relation to the impact of the scandal on Nigel Farage, it’s important to consider that these offences took place when Farage was not leader of Reform UK, or the Brexit party, and so, although Farage should certainly address these issues and investigate further into the activity of high ranking members, to arraign complete blame on the current Reform UK leader is not completely fair. On the other hand, Starmer was leader of the Labour party when the revelations about Barry Gardiner emerged, and so Starmer’s critique of Farage can be seen as fairly duplicitous.
Earlier yesterday [23rd November], Zia Yusuf broke the silence on Gill’s comments, referring to them as “treasonous, horrific, awful”, attempting to distance Reform UK from Gill. Previously, the party has been accused of taking a softer stance on Russia in regards to Ukraine, believing that Britain should focus on their own defense strategy, instead of continuing to fund Ukrainian armies against Russia.
Final thoughts
It is clear however that hostile nations will continue to attempt to infiltrate our political system through bribery and acts of fiscal corruption, a trend that must be stopped. Until our government wants to face reality, free democracy will continue to be at stake. If politicians cannot be trusted to put Britain first, then policies must be introduced to further prevent bribery, for current counter-terroism legislation and strategies are failing on both sides of the party divide. As a nation, we can only hope that malicious political manipulation from China and Russia will be prevented in the future before it has the chance to take root, for catching bribery retrospectively is ludicrously meaningless.
Featured image via National Assembly for Wales / Wikimedia Commons.
