Nathan Gill, the former Reform UK leader in Wales, has admitted eight counts of bribery. His charges surround statements during his time as a member of the European Parliament for the Brexit Party, Reform UK’s predecessor. The charges mention he “agreed to receive financial advantage, namely money” which was deemed as “improper performance” of someone in an elected office.
Mr Gill, who hails from Anglesey, arranged an event with a pro-Russian politician and made pro-Russian remarks in the European Parliament. He also made similar statements in opinion pieces to TV channels which would “benefit Russia regarding events in Ukraine”, including the channel 112 Ukraine. Two Ukrainians are related to this story, the first being Oleg Voloshyn, a former member of the Ukrainian Parliament, Voloshyn represented the pro-Russian “Opposition Platform” party.
He was described by the US government as a “pawn” of the Russian secret service. The court heard that 112 Ukraine was related to Mr Voloshyn through his wife. Gill appeared on the channel but also arranged other MEPs to speak to the channel.
Voloshyn also asked the ex-Reform leader to make specific statements on at least eight occasions in return for cash. The second is Viktor Medvedchuk. Alike Voloshyn, he is also a former pro-Russian politician who was reportedly linked to 112 Ukraine.
Medvedchuk is known to have close ties with Vladimir Putin – the Russian President is his daughter’s godfather. In one of the cases that Nathan Gill appeared on 112 Ukraine, he gave supportive words in defence of Mr Medvedchuk as he faced prosecution for high treason. Much of the workings behind the charges were revealed from WhatsApp messages on Mr Gill’s phone after being stopped at Manchester Airport under counter-terrorism laws.
The prosecutor, Mark Heywood KC, elaborated on how the messages showed an “agreement to receive money in connection with his performance in his duties as a member of the European Parliament”. Nathan Gill has held many positions on the right-wing of UK politics throughout the 2010s. He was part of UKIP, then later Reform UK’s predecessor, the Brexit Party, of whom he was an MEP (Member of the European Parliament) for from 2014 until the UK left the EU in 2020.
Within Wales, he was UKIP leader between 2016-2020 and held the role of Reform UK Wales leader for a stint between March and May in 2021. With a by-election approaching in Caerphilly, opposing parties to Reform UK highlighted how the party’s candidate, Llŷr Powell, worked as a press officer in UKIP previously. Mr Powell worked for Nathan Gill up until December 2017.
Welsh Labour questioned the relationship between Nathan Gill and the Reform UK