Sunday Times Russia Story OLD NEWS

After alleged Prime Minister Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson decreed, under the wise guidance of his chief polecat Dominic Cummings, to veto the report into claims of Russian interference in the UK’s politics, there have been suggestions that someone would leak part or all of it anyway. The Murdoch Sunday Times now claims to have that leak.

Hack Tom Harper outlined what the ST had: “9 Russian businessmen who gave money to the Conservative party are named in a secret intelligence report on the threats posed to UK democracy which was suppressed last week by Downing Street … Oligarchs and other wealthy Tory donors were included in the report on illicit Russian activities in Britain by the cross-party intelligence & security select committee (ISC)”. And there was more.

“Some Russian donors are personally close to the prime minister, including Alexander Temerko, who had close links to the Kremlin’s defence industry, and who has spoken warmly of his ‘friend’ Boris Johnson. He has donated over £1.2m to the Tories over the past 7 years … MPs on the intelligence committee were also briefed on concerns regarding Alexander Lebedev, the former KGB spy who was allowed to buy the London Evening Standard newspaper”. And Bozo’s a pal of Lebedev’s son Evgeny.

But what’s this? "It is not known whether the Russian Tory donors are mentioned in main ISC report, or the classified annex”. So it’s not much of a leak, is it? Worse for Harper and his pals, the ST’s alleged revelation is already old news.

Yesterday, Byline Times published “RUSSIAN INFLUENCE IN BRITAIN … What Johnson Doesn't Want You to Know”. Peter Jukes’ article “reveals what Boris Johnson wants to hide“ and notes that Open Democracy has revealed “that the Conservative Party, which has received more than £3.5 million from Russian funders since 2010, has actually stepped up its dependence on Russian donors to at least £489,850 in the last year, compared to £350,000 in the year previously”. Donors already discussed.

Jukes goes on to discuss the online threats that we already know about, going on to discuss the now-disbanded Conservative Friends of Russia, and some of those in its vicinity, not least Matthew Elliott, a pal of Cummings, participant of Vote Leave, a campaign that blatantly broke the law, and the perpetually thirsty Paul Staines, who runs the Guido Fawkes blog, which abruptly stopped mentioning the Russians.

The Great Guido then began to take adverts from the Russian Embassy. Jukes also considers the influence of the Lebedevs, Cummings’ years in Russia, and much more. So what has the ST got that is different, and indeed new? Harper has effectively admitted that the ST hasn’t got a credible leak. And what the paper has got smells rather as if there has been some recycling not merely of Byline Times, but more importantly Open Democracy.

Moreover, CNN was already on the case with evidence from campaigner Bill Browder, who has caused the gangster régime in the Kremlin such recent discomfort. It is as if someone at the Baby Shard Bunker had seen the bandwagon passing by, and decided that they have to get out in front if it. Without mentioning those who already had the story.

Perhaps that’s why it never made today’s front page. I’ll just leave that one there.

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