Former Welsh Reform UK leader pleads guilty to bribery over pro-Russian statements | UK News

The former leader of Reform UK in Wales has pleaded guilty to bribery over pro-Russian statements about Ukraine in the European Parliament.

Nathan Gill, 52, of Anglesey, North Wales, pleaded guilty to eight counts of bribery between 6 December 2018 and 18 July 2019 at the Old Bailey on Friday.

The charges relate to when Gill was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Wales before the UK left the European Union in 2020. He also led Reform UK‘s 2021 Welsh Parliament election campaign, but is no longer a member of the party.

The charges state that he “agreed to receive financial advantage, namely money” in exchange for statements in both the EU Parliament and opinion pieces for news outlets such as 112 Ukraine that were “supportive of a particular narrative” and would “benefit Russia regarding events in Ukraine”.

He was told to make such statements on eight occasions by Oleg Voloshyn – who had been a Ukrainian government official before 2014 – “and others”, before accepting “quantities of money in cash”, the court heard.

This amounted to “improper performance” as a person in elected office, the prosecution said.

Gill denied one further charge of conspiracy to commit bribery, which the judge decided would lie on file.

Gill was stopped by police at Manchester Airport on 13 September 2021 under the Counter Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019.

Detectives seized his phone and searched his home in north Wales, where they took more of his electronic devices.

Messages revealed communication between Gill and Mr Voloshyn of an “agreement to receive money in connection with his performance in his duties as a member of the European Parliament”, Prosecutor Mark Heywood KC said.

He was interviewed under caution in March 2022 and charged on 20 January 2025.

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Defending Gill, Peter Wright KC acknowledged he was facing a lengthy jail term, but asked for the father-of-five to be given bail ahead of his sentencing.

Mrs Justice Chubb said that the former politician had pleaded guilty to the “full facts” laid out by the prosecution.

“This is a serious matter. Nathan Gill has admitted having asked questions, made statements and carried out other activities in or connected with the European Parliament in support of pro-Russian parties in the Ukraine conflict,” she said.

She granted him conditional bail ahead of sentencing at the same court on 21 November.

Speaking after Friday’s plea hearing, Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Met’s counter terrorism command, said: “Our investigation uncovered an elected MEP was taking payments to peddle narratives that would have had the effect of being beneficial towards Russian interests.

“This case goes to the heart of our democratic values and as we’ve shown here, we will not hesitate to investigate and disrupt anyone seeking to harm or undermine these values and our national security.”

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