PM orders ethics investigation into minister over Labour Together claims

PM orders ethics investigation into minister over Labour Together claims 12 minutes ago Share Save Becky Morton Political reporter Share Save The prime minister has asked his ethics adviser to investigate minister Josh Simons, following claims the think tank he used to run commissioned a report which looked into the background of journalists. Labour Together, which helped Sir Keir Starmer get elected as Labour leader, paid APCO Worldwide at least £30,000 to "investigate the sourcing, funding and origins" of a Sunday Times story about undeclared donations at the think tank ahead of the 2024 election. Simons has previously said the company had "gone beyond" what it had been asked to do by including "unnecessary information". Sir Keir had already asked the Cabinet Office to investigate Simons last week. However, more than 20 Labour MPs had called for a "fully independent investigation", pointing out that Simons is a minister in the Cabinet Office. PM orders investigation into Labour Together claims Labour think tank commissioned firm that ended up investigating journalist Sign up for our Politics Essential newsletter to keep up with the inner workings of Westminster and beyond.