Josh Simons has resigned as a Cabinet Office minister after it emerged that he commissioned a lobbying firm to investigate journalists while he was director of the Labour Together thinktank. The £36,000 report, produced by Apco in 2023, falsely linked reporters from The Sunday Times, The Guardian and other outlets to a 'pro-Kremlin' network.
The board of Labour Together has distanced itself from Simons' actions, with chair Sally Morgan describing the scope of the Apco work as 'indefensible'. The board said it was not shown the contract or the final report, and has since introduced new governance measures including an audit committee and whistleblowing policy.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to sever all ties with Labour Together and return donations received from the organisation. Several Labour MPs, including Karl Turner and Clive Lewis, have also expressed disappointment at Starmer's response, with Lewis stating that Simons should have resigned weeks ago.
Simons, who led Labour Together at the time of the scandal, said in his resignation letter that he had commissioned the investigation to determine whether confidential material had been leaked via a hack of the Electoral Commission. He denied seeking to smear the journalists involved. An inquiry by the prime minister's independent adviser on ministerial standards found no breach of the ministerial code but concluded that Simons' continued presence in government risked reputational damage.
Labour Together chief executive Alison Phillips said the organisation was 'shocked' by the revelations and confirmed that journalists should not have been investigated. The thinktank has pledged to make a 'clean break from the past' while continuing to support the Labour government.
