A comment on EDW’s recent articles on Swire and his business pal Lord Barker:
https://eastdevonwatch.org/2019/01/28/swire-eagle-and-sham-an-unfortunate-choice-of-company-name/
throws more light on Barker’s past and recent dealings:
“Of course, as you report above, Oleg Deripaska has not only courted Conservative parliamentarians: he famously wined and dined Peter Mandelson on his yacht (together with George Osbourne):
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/3210969/Peter-Mandelson-had-three-meetings-with-Russian-oligarch-Oleg-Deripaska.html
and
That was over a decade ago – but the lobbying continues:
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/exclusive-tories-under-fire-for-links-to-pro-russia-lobbyists-9583023.html
Last October, the UK’s security minister turned down a request to meet up with Lord Barker, “requesting government assistance for Russian associates”:
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/tory-peers-told-to-come-clean-about-russia-links-gskcs3tw9
And in July last year, Transparency.org looked at ‘In Whose Interest’ this lobbying is conducted – as “corrupt and repressive regimes seek influence and legitimacy through engagement with UK Parliamentarians.”
https://www.transparency.org.uk/wp-content/plugins/download-attachments/includes/download.php?id=7724
Now, I’m not of course suggesting that Hugo Swire is involved in any such lobbying – but what is disturbing is how the ‘networking’ by Russian oligarchs and others with very close connections to the Kremlin is not being questioned more readily here in the UK.
Not only is this very creepy, but it undermines (the vestiges of) our democratic system.
Well done the EDW for continuing to poke at this.”
East Devon Watch 
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