Tories face questions over tycoon donor named in money laundering case
The government has insisted it is committed to making sure there is no “dirty money” in the UK as the Tories faced questions over business tycoon and Tory donor Javad Marandi.
Mr Marandi was described as a “person of importance” in a National Crime Agency’s investigation into the so-called “Azerbaijani Laundromat” – and lost a 19-month legal battle with the BBC to remain anonymous.
The business tycoon, who owns famous design brand The Conran Shop and the private members’ club Soho Farmhouse, said he is “deeply disappointed” by the judge’s ruling to lift reporting restrictions.
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Mr Marandi strongly denies wrongdoing and is not subject to criminal sanction.
According to the BBC, the NCA found some of Mr Marandi’s overseas interests had played a role in an enormous money-laundering scheme involving one of Azerbaijan’s richest oligarchs.
SNP MP Alison Thewliss said the naming of Mr Marandi was a “victory of transparency and freedom of the press”.
Alson Thewliss
Raising an urgent question about the investigation in the Commons, she said: “While it’s incumbent on me to state that Mr Marandi denies any wrongdoing… the National Crime Agency has found that companies linked to Mr Marandi are a crucial part of the Azerbaijan network known as the Azerbaijani Laundromat.
“The UK must not be a home for the world’s dirty money but has become so under the Tories.”
Ms Thewliss called Mr Marandi, who has an OBE for business and philanthropy, a “significant donor to the Tory party”.
Records from the electoral commission show he gave £663,800 to the Conservatives between 2014 and 2020, with the biggest sums coming during the Boris Johnson premiership.
Responding, policing minister Chris Philp insisted the government is “committed to ensuring the United Kingdom does not have dirty money”, pointing to the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill which is passing through parliament.
Chris Philp
He also insisted the government was committed to combating so-called “slapps” (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) – “where extremely rich individuals use, essentially vexatious or malfeasant lawsuits to shut down proper scrutiny and proper free speech”.
“Clearly in this case the judge decided transparency and the public interest was served by disclosure, and I welcome that,” he said.
Calls for independent inquiry
Earlier, Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper called for an independent inquiry “to get to the bottom” of Mr Marandi’s donations, saying the Tories “have simply given up on standards, and they have no shame about where their money comes from”.
Labour MPs also hit out at the government in the Commons, with the MP for Halifax, Holly Lynch, accusing the Tories of a “lack of rigour when accepting donations”.
Tycoon ‘vehemently denies any wrongdoing’
Mr Marandi was initially granted an anonymity order at the outset of the case going to court In October 2021, but that has now been lifted by a judge.
In a statement, Mr Marandi’s spokesperson said he “vehemently denies any wrongdoing”.
The spokesperson said: “At no point has Mr Marandi been investigated or questioned by the authorities. And no case has ever been brought against him or his businesses in relation to these or any other matters, anywhere in the world.
“He was not the subject of this civil claim, nor a party nor a witness, meaning no evidence could be submitted on his behalf or representations made. It is therefore unjust to be named, without having had the fundamental right to rebut these false findings.
“As such, Mr Marandi is deeply disappointed at the court’s decision to lift reporting restrictions, knowing the reputational damage that is likely to follow.”
Spain is to legalise about 300,000 undocumented migrants a year – at a time that many European countries are seeking to limit or deter migration.
The policy, approved on Tuesday by Spain’s left-wing minority coalition government, aims to tackle the country’s ageing workforce and low birthrate.
Around 250,000 registered foreign workers a year are needed to maintain the country’s welfare state, according to migration minister Elma Saiz.
The scheme, due to run from May next year until 2027, will allow foreigners living in Spain without proper documentation to obtain work permits and residency.
The exact number of foreigners living in Spain without documentation is unclear.
However, around 54,000 undocumented migrants reached Spain so far this year by sea or land, according to government figures.
Many arrive via the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago located off the coast of northwestern Africa.
Spain’s minister of inclusion, social security and migration, Elma Saiz. Pic: AP
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The figure compares to the 30,000 people who have arrived in the UK via small boats across the Channel so far in 2024.
The UK, as well as other European nations, including Germany, France, and the Netherlands, have in recent years taken tougher stances on migration.
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However, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has often described his government’s migration policies as a way to combat the country’s low birthrate.
The government’s new policy simplifies the administrative processes for short and long-term visas and provides migrants with additional workplace protections.
It also extends a visa offered previously to job-seekers for three months to one year.
Many migrants make a living in Spain’s underground economy as fruit pickers, caretakers, delivery drivers, or other low-paid jobs.
Migration minister Ms Saiz said the government’s new policy would help prevent abuse and “serve to combat mafias, fraud and the violation of rights”.
World
Alec Baldwin’s Rust premieres three years after fatal shooting – but cinematographer’s mother refuses to attend
Alec Baldwin’s Western film Rust has premiered at a festival in Poland, three years after the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on set.
The movie debuted at the Camerimage Festival in Poland, an event focusing on achievements in cinematography, to an audience of a few hundred – a more low-key affair than the typical fanfare of Hollywood releases.
Director Joel Souza, who was wounded in the shooting, said he hoped the completed film would now be a tribute to Ms Hutchins – who died after a prop gun held by Baldwin went off during filming in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in October 2021.
Rust director Joel Souza attended the film’s premiere in Poland. Pic: Reuters
Baldwin was charged with involuntary manslaughter and went on trial in July – but the case was dismissed in dramatic fashion during the hearing after the prosecution was accused of concealing ammunition evidence.
The star did not attend the premiere in Poland.
Speaking beforehand, Souza said it “wasn’t an easy decision by any means” to continue the film after Hutchins’s death, “but it became important to me and important to her husband that people see her final work”.
The church scene they were working on when Hutchins was shot has gone from the film, he said.
“It doesn’t exist anymore. We were never going to finish that… I changed the script and so I wiped that out of it.”
Cinematographer’s mother criticises Baldwin
Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Pic: Swen Studios/Handout via Reuters
Bianca Cline, the cinematographer who completed the film, also attended the event.
Ms Hutchins’s mother Olga Solovey, who has filed a lawsuit against Baldwin, did not attend and criticised the star for allegedly “unjustly” profiting from the tragedy.
In a statement issued by her lawyer, Gloria Allred, she said she had always hoped to watch her daughter’s “work come alive on screen” alongside her.
However, this opportunity was “ripped away”, she said.
Ms Solovey said Baldwin had not apologised to her and that her pain was increased by his “refusal to take responsibility”. She said there had been “no justice” for her daughter.
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Rust’s armourer Hannah Gutierrez, who was in charge of weapons on the set, was jailed for 18 months earlier this year, after being found guilty of involuntary manslaughter during a trial separate to Baldwin’s. She is appealing the sentence.
Rust is billed as the story of a 13-year-old boy who, left to fend for himself and his younger brother following their parents’ deaths in 1880s Wyoming, goes on the run with his long-estranged grandfather after being sentenced to hang for the accidental killing of a local rancher.
The Polish festival’s ticketing website reportedly crashed on Tuesday morning due to high demand for tickets to the world premiere.
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