Scotland Yard is assessing a complaint that Labour’s 2004 hunting ban was, in the words of a former party fundraiser, “bought and paid for” by a £1 million donation. Jonathan Powell’s name features prominently…
According to the Telegraph, the allegation – referred to the Met by pro-hunting campaigners – is that the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) gave Labour £1 million in 1996 in return for a manifesto commitment to ban hunting with dogs. Former Labour fundraiser Brian Basham claims it was Powell, then Blair’s chief of staff, who sent him to collect the cheque. Basham says it came with the message “We have to stop hunting with dogs”…
The complaint asks the police to examine the party for alleged misconduct in public office. The Met confirms it received a report on 20th April concerning “a donation made to a political party prior to the 1997 general election,” and that officers are assessing it. No investigation has been launched (yet), and Labour of course insists it’s a non-story. But the claims are awkward for Powell. He’s still in situ as Burnham’s National Security Adviser…
As Andy Burnham prepares to become Prime Minister next week, Mauritian Government and Whitehall officials have scented their chance to attempt to resurrect Starmer’s doomed Chagos deal. Good luck with that…
As Guido first reported – repeated by the Telegraph over the weekend – Burnham’s team is currently minded to continue with the deal. However, Burnham is no foreign policy expert and is said to not be involved personally. Sellout architect Jonathan Powell is set to stay in place…
Minutes of a meeting of the Mauritius Cabinet held on Friday reveal the FCDO is planning yet another costly UK delegation to Port Louis in October. The Mauritius Government has also been busy lobbying peers – who held up Starmer’s attempt to ram the deal through the Lords. The minutes claim Mauritius is trying to ensure “key members of the House of Lords hear more balanced views”. There is enormous and lively parliamentary opposition to the sellout…
The Mauritius Government was informed of the upcoming change of UK administration on 2nd July, and in response demanded a ‘road map’ to complete the deal from the next PM. That road map will only lead to a car crash for Burnham if he pursues it…
Keir Starmer’s spokesman has failed to deny that the Chagos handover was raised at ‘access talks’ with Andy Burnham.
Guido first reported that the access talks were underway seven days ago and sources familiar with the process say that Cabinet Secretary Antonia Romeo, who is in charge of the meetings, has advised Burnham that he must continue with the deal. She has been supported by National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell, who is pushing extremely hard for the handover to go ahead…
Powell has decided to remain in post under Burnham and Downing Street sources say he will be empowered under a new PM with less interest in foreign affairs. Starmer’s spokesman said today: “We wouldn’t ever go into the content of those talks… our position on Diego Garcia, it remains consistent, there is no change to that position.” Will Burnham let surrender of sovereign territory become his main foreign policy plank…
Morgan McSweeney told the Foreign Affairs Select Committee: “Jonathan Powell got appointed too before the necessary [vetting] work”. Westminster has moved on since the release of the damning Mandelson files, Guido has not…
Leaked emails show that Jonathan Powell was working in Syria from at least 2012 onwards – including negotiating with terror groups. As part of that work, Powell established back-channel contact with Hayat Tahrir Al Sham via Inter Mediate, the negotiation and diplomacy consultancy he co-founded after leaving government. Powell markets this as ‘talking to terrorists’, the title of his book on conflict resolution…
Did Powell meet the leader of HTS Ahmeda al-Shara/Jolani in 2021 – a time when he was a wanted terrorist with a $10 million bounty on his head from the US government? Powell’s Inter Mediate company certainly worked with HTS and al-Shara from 2023 onwards, rebranding them ‘from terrorists into politicians’. The work included organising two meetings between HTS and former US ambassador to Syria Robert Ford…
Today, after HTS’s violent seizure of power, Inter Mediate reportedly operate an office in the Presidential Palace of Ahmed Al-Shara. Powell’s links to Syria appear to involve Wafic Said, who has helped Powell establish contacts in the region. Labour is giving it large on a crackdown on groups such as Palestine Action – what about the record of its own security bigwig?
The Mail and other outlets have reported that Powell used his former company Inter-Mediate and his role in government to ‘significantly influence’ the UK’s relationship with Syria. Friends of Powell like Wafic Said have managed to secure massive $300 million deals with the Syrian government. Did Powell’s rushed vetting cover his work on these issues? What declarations did Powell make before the meetings he has held with Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa, who Inter Mediate continued to advise once Powell returned to Number 10? Labour is up to its neck…
National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell’s vetting arrangements have been brought into question amid the Mandelson vetting scandal. Guido has long tracked Powell’s extremely suspect visits to China while in UK government roles…
Powell held multiple meetings with the former Head of Intelligence for the PLA, multiple meetings with the former Vice Foreign Minister, and meetings with senior party officials and those with links to Chinese intelligence. Guido has strung together every meeting Powell has had with individuals linked to the Chinese government. They are numerous and several take place after his appointment as Chagos Deal negotiator but before his promotion to National Security Adviser…
Beijing engagements before, during, and after appointment as PM’s Special Envoy for BIOT
Pre-appointment – China meetings via Inter Mediate
| 21 Aug 2023 | Met Cui Tiankai (former Vice Foreign Minister & Ambassador to US), Zhang Baijia (CCP History Research Office), and Ouyang Wei (linked to PLA political warfare body) in Beijing. |
| 21 Aug 2023 | Beijing seminar on “China-US-Europe relations and the Ukraine Crisis” at Grandview Institution. |
| 22 Aug 2023 | Met Lt Gen Chen Xiaogong — former Deputy Commander of Chinese Air Force and former head of PLA General Staff Intelligence Department. |
| 23 Aug 2023 | Keynote at Grandview Current Affairs Lecture Hall, Beijing — on North Korea negotiations and conflict mediation. |
| 19 Mar 2024 | Met Yao Yunzhu (former Director, PLA Academy of Military Science China-US Relations Center) and arms control researchers at Grandview, Beijing. |
| 20 Mar 2024 | Met Cui Tiankai and Lt Gen Chen Xiaogong (PLA intelligence chief) again in Beijing. |
| 21 Mar 2024 | Spoke at Peking University and Grandview — said China “can and should play an important mediating role” in world crises. |
| 22 Mar 2024 | Met Shen Xin, Secretary General of the CPAFFC — described by US Congress as the public face of the United Front Work Department. |
| 22 Mar 2024 | Met Xu Poling (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences) and Wu Hao (Grandview defence) on Russia-Ukraine mediation. |
BIOT Envoy appointment
| 2 Aug 2024 | Met FCDO civil servants to discuss Chagos and received Chagos material — before formal appointment. |
| 6 Sep 2024 | Formally appointed PM’s Special Envoy for BIOT negotiations. “He will begin his role immediately.” BIOT Envoy |
| 19 Sep 2024 | 13 days after BIOT appointment — met Yang Xiyu (China Institute of International Studies, under MFA) and Zhang Tuosheng (former PLA / Chinese embassy defence attaché) in Beijing. While BIOT Envoy |
| 21–22 Sep 2024 | Chaired a Beijing strategic security dialogue with Chinese experts — described as “candid, practical, and in-depth.” While BIOT Envoy |
National Security Adviser
| 2 Dec 2024 | Began work as UK National Security Adviser. NSA |
| 14 Jul 2025 | Met Wang Yi — Politburo member, Director of Central Commission for Foreign Affairs — in Beijing. As NSA |
| 28 Nov 2025 | Met Wang Yi again in Beijing. As NSA |
| 28 Jan 2026 | Met Wang Yi in Beijing. As NSA |
| 23 Mar 2026 | Met Wang Yi in Beijing. As NSA |
Asked to list his external engagements while in the “BIOT envoy” role, the government said: “Mr Powell was appointed as the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy in early August 2024. All activities undertaken by him in that role were conducted appropriately and in line with established procedures.” Blocked…
Asked about whether the Chagos Islands were discussed with Chinese officials at a meeting in mid-2025, the government said: “The National Security Adviser meets with a range of individuals and organisations as part of his role providing advice to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet on national security matters. Such meetings are often sensitive in nature, and the Government does not routinely comment on them or their content.” Blocked…
Asked what interests Powell declared, the government said: “There are established mechanisms in place for the management of interests. In line with long-standing practice, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office does not comment on individual cases.” Blocked…
These are the same arguments advanced by the government in the wake of questions about Peter Mandelson. Whose vetting process was, it has emerged, anything but standard…
An enterprising MP on the Foreign Affairs Select Committee may wish to ask Sir Philip Barton or Morgan McSweeney about Jonathan Powell’s security and vetting arrangements at their respective appearances tomorrow. Can’t hide forever…
UPDATE: Now confirmed by Morgan McSweeney at Foreign Affairs committee: “I got appointed before I completed all my necessary work, Jonathan Powell got appointed too before the necessary work.”
Jonathan Powell must be a very familiar face in Beijing. He’s back there on another unannounced visit this week, not disclosed by the British Government…
Chinese media notes Powell met Wang Yi, China’s Minister of Foreign Affairs yesterday. Chagos on the agenda no doubt, as well as Ukraine and Iran…
Is the UK about to join the Iran-China axis? Staggering stuff…
Andy Haldane, Burnham’s recent adviser on the economy who has not taken up a No10 job, told Andrew Marr on LBC:
“The market now suspects that this is a traditional tax-and-spend socialist government with better TikTok videos…
imposing windfall taxes on oil & gas or on banks or upping capital gains tax would […] repeat the mistake that Rachel made […] The Achilles heel, the fiscal Achilles heel of this government thus far has been its unwillingness and/or inability to cut public spending.”