A Labour minister accused of paying a PR firm to smear journalists has resigned, saying he had ‘become a distraction from this Government’s important work’.
Josh Simons faced calls to resign from his ministerial post over claims he ordered a damaging newspaper article while in charge of think-tank Labour Together.
American PR firm APCO Worldwide produced a confidential report into a 2023 Sunday Times story revealing that Labour Together had failed to disclose £730,000 in donations when it was run by Morgan McSweeney, later Sir Keir Starmer ’s chief of staff.
In his resignation letter to the Prime Minister, Mr Simons said: ‘It is clear that my remaining in office has now become a distraction from this Government’s important work.
‘For that reason, and with sadness and regret, I offer my resignation.’
Mr Simons, who is also Labour MP for Makerfield, has previously dismissed claims he commissioned it as ‘nonsense’.
An investigation into the claims was announced on Monday, only hours after Downing Street said Sir Keir Starmer continued to have full confidence in Mr Simons.
The inquiry, headed up by Sir Laurie Magnus, the Prime Minister’s independent adviser on ministerial standards, is probing Mr Simon’s time in charge of the Labour Together think tank between 2022 and 2024.
Josh Simons (pictured) has resigned as a Cabinet Office minister, saying he had ‘become a distraction from this Government’s important work’
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in September last year. The Labour Together think tank supported Starmer’s Labour leadership bid
The group, which helped Sir Keir get elected as Labour leader, is said to have hired a PR firm to investigate journalists reporting on its funding.
APCO Worldwide is reported to have been paid £36,000 to examine the personal, political and religious ‘backgrounds and motivations’ of reporters in 2023.
The investigation is said to have taken place after stories were published about Labour Together’s failure to declare more than £700,000 in donations.
A 58-page dossier by APCO is reported to have included pages of deeply personal and false claims about Sunday Times’ Whitehall editor Gabriel Pogrund.
Darren Jones, the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, on Monday told the House of Commons that Sir Keir had asked Sir Laurie to investigate Mr Simons following the conclusion of a fact-finding exercise by the Cabinet Office’s propriety and ethics team (PET).
Mr Simons was earlier reported to have accidentally messaged details of his case to a WhatsApp group of Labour MPs.
In an apparent reference to Labour Chief Whip Jonathan Reynolds, he is said to have written: ‘Jonny rang, PM will ask Laurie to look in to it. Aim is to move fast. But PET did find I had not broken the code.’
Mr Simons, a strong ally of Sir Keir, has previously said it was ‘nonsense’ to claim he wanted to investigate journalists.
He also claimed to be ‘surprised and shocked’ by APCO’s decision to include ‘unnecessary information’ on Mr Pogrund, as it had ‘extended beyond the contract’.
But leaked details of the contract confirmed APCO was asked to investigate the ‘sourcing, funding and origins’ of a newspaper article about Labour Together’s donations.
In a confirmation letter to Mr Simons, the firm promised to ‘provide a body of evidence that could be packaged up for use in the media’.
It has also been claimed that Mr Simons passed the findings of the inquiry to the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), suggesting that it investigate whether Labour Together had been targeted by a Russian operation to undermine Sir Keir.
A spokesperson for Mr Simons denied the allegations. ‘These claims are untrue,’ they said.
Mr Simons, a strong ally of Sir Keir, has previously said it was ‘nonsense’ to claim he wanted to investigate journalists
The claims piled pressure on Mr Simons to resign as more than 20 Labour MPs wrote to the PM and Hollie Ridley, Labour’s general secretary, to demand an independent investigation into Labour Together’s actions.
In a letter seen by the Telegraph, the MPs said: ‘We note concerns that any investigation led or overseen by Government departments containing individuals with past or present links to Labour Together risks undermining public trust, regardless of eventual findings.
‘Even the perception of partiality can cause lasting damage to confidence in our democratic institutions.’
They added: ‘At a time when trust in politics remains fragile, it is imperative that these allegations are addressed in a manner that upholds the highest standards of integrity and accountability.’
Rachael Maskell, the Labour MP for York Central and a signatory to the letter, said: ‘It is vital that we defend the freedom of journalists and I am appalled that Labour Together sought to undermine them.
‘Only an independent inquiry could instil confidence. I want integrity and transparency at the heart of politics so the Cabinet Office cannot investigate Labour Together when its former director remains a minister in the Cabinet Office.’
The PM’s official spokesman said: ‘Journalism and the free press are fundamental to any democracy and any reporters must be able to do their jobs without fear of favour.
‘It’s right that there’s an internal process led by officials in the PET team to establish the facts of the matter.’
Labour Together was fined £14,250 in September 2021 over late reporting of donations, totalling £730,000 between 2017 and 2020, after referring itself to the Electoral Commission.
APCO said it is undertaking a ‘detailed internal review of the project’.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow
