Finance
Exclusive: Watchdog probing Starmer aide’s secret lobbying of Tory ministers
openDemocracy findings on Varun Chandra’s activities at Hakluyt prompted official watchdog to launch investigation
Labour
Analysis
Revealed: What goes on in No 10’s mass lobbying calls?
Not much at all, it turns out. But the growing stench of desperation is palpable, even over Microsoft Teams
Finance
Revealed: Banking giant threatened to leave UK over mooted tax increase
JP Morgan Chase wrote to Rachel Reeves to lobby against rumoured banking surcharge rise ahead of autumn budget
Keir Starmer
The veteran Tory and City lobbyist advising Starmer’s business team
Iain Anderson’s newfound love for Labour has raised eyebrows across Westminster and worried some in the party
Westminster
Dark Arts Dispatch: Westminster is a ‘safe space’ for lobbyists
Plus, how Peter Mandelson might find common ground with Trump in rumoured new role as UK ambassador to Washington
Rachel Reeves
The BlackRock letters: inside Labour's 'close partnership'
The business secretary told the head of a major global investment banker that he looked forward to working together to “change the face of our United Kingdom"
Labour
Dark Arts Dispatch: Westminster’s revolving door just keeps spinning
Failed MPs and outgoing spads turn to lobbying, plus the new shadow science minister’s links to arms firms and tech giants
Labour
Dark Arts Dispatch: New lobbyist in town, a wind-powered party and FOI fears
A new lobby shop has close links to Starmer and his top team, while another firm is wooing junior journalists
Greenwashing
Dark Arts Dispatch: Corporate capture, utilisation and storage
Plus, a Labour donor wins big on government contracts, a would-be MP fails upwards and the smoking lobby returns
Media
Dark Arts Dispatch: Rogue investors, lobbyist cricket and visitors at No 10
Firms fined for breaching environmental, labour and consumer protection rules are stars of Labour’s investment summit
Keir Starmer
Revealed: No 10 advisor involved in AI policy has financial interests in AI
Varun Chandra left an MI6-linked consultancy to join Starmer’s government, but he still has a stake in its AI-backing investment fund
Keir Starmer
Labour given £4m from tax haven-based hedge fund with shares in oil and arms
Quadrature’s donation is noteworthy not just for being Labour’s largest-ever, but for its timing ahead of election