Ex-Reform leader in Wales jailed for ten-and-a-half years over pro-Russia bribes

The disgraced former leader of Reform UK in Wales has been jailed for ten-and-a-half years after taking bribes to make pro-Russian statements in the European Parliament.

Nathan Gill, 52, a former Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Wales, appeared at the Old Bailey in London for sentencing on Friday November 21.

He previously pleaded guilty to eight counts of bribery between December 2018 and July 2019 – while he was an MEP.

Gill will be eligible for release on licence after serving half the sentence in jail.

His punishment comes after he took 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 pro-Russia 112 Ukraine television channel.

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

In total, Gill took around £40,000 in exchange for tabling motions, delivering speeches, and enabling media access for individuals linked to pro-Russian interests.

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

Bethan David, head of counter terrorism for the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “This case strikes at the heart of democratic integrity.

“Accepting bribes from foreign nationals to influence parliamentary proceedings undermines public trust and the proper functioning of government.”

She continued: “Nathan Gill has admitted that he knew what he was doing was wrong, and his activities only ended because of the UK’s departure from the European Union, removing him from a position of use for those who sought to influence him. 

“Public office is a position of trust, and his actions represent a serious breach of that trust, his sentencing today shows the seriousness of that breach.” 

Following Gill’s sentencing, Labour MP Al Carns, minister of state for the Armed Forces, called on Reform UK leader Nigel Farage to “urgently initiate an independent investigation into every inch of Reform UK’s party structures, membership, donors, and representatives, to give the public a cast iron guarantee that any remaining pro-Russian links have been removed from his party”.

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.