Key facts
- Businessman Arron Banks is being urged to disclose the extent of his alleged surveillance of journalists.
- The News Media Association (NMA) described the actions as an "attack on our democracy."
- Banks reportedly admitted to hiring private investigators to spy on a Sunday Times journalist.
- Concerns exist that journalists from outlets like The Guardian, who are investigating Reform UK and Nigel Farage, may also have been targeted.
- Banks previously hired "ex-MI5 and SAS" operatives to surveil political opponents.
Businessman Arron Banks is facing significant pressure to reveal the full extent of his alleged surveillance operations targeting journalists. The News Media Association (NMA), representing media outlets across the UK, has strongly condemned these actions as an "attack on our democracy" and a threat to independent journalism.
The controversy erupted after Banks reportedly admitted to hiring private investigators to spy on Gabriel Pogrund, the editor of The Sunday Times' Insight investigations team. This revelation has fueled fears that other journalists, particularly those at The Guardian and The Sunday Times who have been investigating the funding of the Reform UK party and its leader Nigel Farage, may also be under surveillance.
When questioned about potentially targeting Guardian reporters, Banks stated he was "not really interested" in the publication but offered no further comment. He also suggested to the New Statesman that The Sunday Times might have used "hacked information," a claim the newspaper has vehemently denied. Responding to direct questions about investigating Pogrund, Banks cryptically stated, "When you live by the sword, you die by the sword."
Industry leaders have voiced serious concerns. Jemimah Steinfeld, chief executive of Index on Censorship, urged Banks to be transparent, fearing that such tactics could deter journalists from holding public figures accountable, thereby undermining democratic structures. Reform UK has officially denied any knowledge of Banks's alleged use of investigators, though a board member, Gawain Towler, expressed personal discomfort while also questioning the sources of journalists' information.
Politicians have also weighed in, with former Conservative minister Nicky Morgan asserting that investigating journalists is "not compatible with an open democracy" and has a "chilling effect on free speech." Lisa Smart, the Liberal Democrats' spokesperson for the Cabinet Office, described the alleged actions as a "desperate attempt to dodge accountability" and a sign of "complete contempt for a free press."
This is not the first time Banks has been linked to such tactics. He is reported to have previously employed individuals described as "ex-MI5 and SAS" operatives to surveil political opponents during the Brexit referendum campaign, a practice that Matthew Elliott, a Conservative peer, warned could drive away necessary individuals from public life.