Ex-Reform leader pleads guilty to Pro-Russia bribery charges

The former leader of Reform UK in Wales has pleaded guilty to numerous bribery charges relating to pro-Russian statements.

Nathan Gill, a former Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Wales, appeared at the Old Bailey in London on Friday September 26.

He pleaded guilty to eight counts of bribery between December 2018 and July 2019 – but denied one charge of conspiracy to commit bribery.

Gill is accused of taking money from Ukrainian politician Oleh Voloshyn in exchange for making pro-Russia statements in both the European Parliament and in opinion pieces for the now-defunct 112 Ukraine television channel.

Voloshyn, 44, was sanctioned by the UK Government in March 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Gill was stopped at Manchester Airport in September 2021 following an investigation by British counter-terrorism police.

The Crown Prosecution Service said the allegations against Gill, a former Senedd Member, took place during his time as an MEP.

Responding to the case, Welsh Labour spokesperson said: “We thought that Nigel Farage would put his own interests before Wales, but now it turns out he’ll put Russian interests before Wales too.

“With Reform Caerphilly candidate Llŷr Powell a former employee of Nathan Gill’s, the people of Caerphilly have a right to know – what did he know about this case?”

Mr Powell’s employment with Gill ended in December 2017, before the alleged offences were committed.

A Reform UK Wales spokesman said: “This is pure desperation from a Welsh Labour Party that is being rejected by the public and floundering in the polls. This sort of gutter politics has no place in Wales.”

Who is Nathan Gill?

Gill, 52, from Anglesey, represented Wales in the European Parliament between 2014 and 2020, and campaigned for the UK to leave the European Union during the 2016 referendum.

He was previously a member of UKIP, and led the party in Wales between 2014 and 2016.

He also represented North Wales as a regional member of the then-National Assembly for Wales between 2016 and 2017.

In 2019, he left UKIP to join Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party (now Reform UK). In the general election that same year, he stood for the party in the Caerphilly constituency, where he finished fourth with 11.2% of the vote.

He became Reform’s leader in Wales ahead of the 2021 Senedd Elections.

However, Reform UK has said Gill is no longer a member of the party, which does not currently have a leader in Wales.

Confirmed by-election candidates so far

• Welsh Liberal Democrats – Steve Aicheler
• Gwlad – Anthony Cook
• Wales Green Party – Gareth Hughes
• Welsh Conservatives – Gareth Potter
• Reform UK – Llŷr Powell
• Richard Tunnicliffe – Labour
• Lindsay Whittle – Plaid Cymru