A minister has suggested voters should consider attending Tory fundraisers in their local area if they want access to MPs, as he rejected claims Robert Jenrick gave “special treatment” to a billionaire property developer.
Nadhim Zahawi’s remarks come as the housing secretary faces escalating pressure after new papers suggested he was “insistent” a decision on a £1bn property development be rushed through before a Conservative donor’s company faced millions in taxes.
Defending the under-fire cabinet minister, Mr Zahawi rejected there was any “smoking gun” over the issue, and that Mr Jenrick had pulled the plug on Richard Desmond’s proposed east London property development when there was a “perception of bias”.
Download the new Independent Premium app
Sharing the full story, not just the headlines
But during a heated exchange on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Zahawi was repeatedly questioned on the access Mr Desmond had to the housing secretary, after the pair were seated next to each other at a Conservative Party fundraising event at the Savoy hotel.
At the weekend, Mr Desmond also claimed to have showed Mr Jenrick a promotional video during the November event lasting “three or four minutes” and papers released last night show the pair exchanged text messages after the fundraiser.
1/50 24 June 2020
People enjoy the hot weather on Margate beach
Reuters
2/50 23 June 2020
Tony Bennett the owner of The Devereux pub in Temple, London. Pub and hospitality bosses have cheered the Government’s proposals to allow customers through their doors again on July 4 as “a welcome relief”. PA Photo. Picture date: Tuesday June 23, 2020. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday that pubs, restaurants and cinemas will be able to reopen from July 4, with “one metre-plus” distancing measures in place
PA
3/50 22 June 2020
Police forensics officers carry out a search near Forbury Gardens, in Reading town centre, the scene of a multiple stabbing attack which took place at around 7pm on Saturday, leaving three people dead and another three seriously injured
PA
4/50 21 June 2020
Soccer Football – Premier League – Everton v Liverpool – Goodison Park, Liverpool, Britain – June 21, 2020 Children play football outside the stadium before the match, as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19)
Action Images via Reuters
5/50 20 June 2020
Arsenal’s midfielder Nicolas Pepe kneels before the Premier League match against Brighton and Hove Albion at the American Express Community Stadium in southern England
AFP via Getty
6/50 19 June 2020
Bianca Walkden during a training session at the National Taekwondo Centre in Manchester
PA
7/50 18 June 2020
French President Emmanuel Macron gestures about social distancing alongside Prime Minister Boris Johnson as he arrives at Downing Street for a meeting. Macron also visited London to commemorate the 80th anniversary of former French president Charles de Gaulle’s appeal to French people to resist the Nazi occupation during World War II
AFP/Getty
8/50 17 June 2020
Players kneel, as well as, having ‘Black Lives Matter’ in place of names on their shirts prior to the start of the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Sheffield United at Villa Park in Birmingham. The league resumed after its three-month suspension because of coronavirus
AP
9/50 16 June 2020
Motakhayyel ridden by Jim Crowley, right, wins the Buckingham Palace Handicap during day one of Royal Ascot. This year, the flat racing’s biggest meeting, is behind closed doors due to the coronavirus outbreak
PA
10/50 15 June 2020
Queues form at Primark at the Rushden Lakes shopping complex after the government relaxed coronavirus lockdown laws significantly, allowing zoos, safari parks and non-essential shops to open to visitors
Getty
11/50 14 June 2020
A man kneels at a commemoration to mark the third anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire in London. The fire claimed 72 lives on 14 June 2017
PA
12/50 13 June 2020
Protesters confront police in Whitehall near Parliament Square, during a protest by the Democratic Football Lads Alliance
PA
13/50 12 June 2020
A Black Lives Matter supporter sings to crowds who marched with her in front of the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square in London. The death of an African American man, George Floyd, while in the custody of Minneapolis police has sparked protests across the United States, as well as demonstrations of solidarity in many countries around the world
Getty
14/50 11 June 2020
Scouts show their support at the Lord Baden-Powell statue in Poole. The statue of Robert Baden-Powell on Poole Quay is to be placed in “safe storage” following concerns about his racial views
Getty
15/50 10 June 2020
Social distancing markers around the penguin enclosure at London Zoo. Staff have been preparing and are now ready for reopening next week with new signage, one-way trails for visitors to follow, and extra handwashing and sanitiser stations in place
PA
16/50 9 June 2020
Protestors hold placards and shout slogans during during a protest called by the Rhodes Must Fall campaign calling for the removal of the statue of British imperialist Cecil John Rhodes outside Oriel College, at the University of Oxford
AFP via Getty
17/50 8 June 2020
Hermione Wilson helps to install a new artwork at Jupiter Artland, Edinburgh, created as a tribute to the NHS titled “A Thousand Thank Yous” originally devised by the late Allan Kaprow which consists of colourful painted messages on cardboard and has been directed remotely by London-based artist Peter Liversidge
PA
18/50 7 June 2020
The Edward Colston statue has been pulled down by Black Lives Matter protesters in Bristol. Colston was a 17th century slave trader who has numerous landmarks named after him in Bristol
SWNS
19/50 6 June 2020
Children pose for their family in front of discarded placards fixed on a wall in Piccadilly Gardens after a Black Lives Matter demonstrations in Manchester. The death of an African-American man, George Floyd, while in the custody of Minneapolis police has sparked protests across the United States, as well as demonstrations of solidarity in many countries around the world
Getty
20/50 5 June 2020
Protesters kneel in Trafalgar Square during a Black Lives Matter demonstration in London, England. The death of an African-American man, George Floyd, while in the custody of Minneapolis police has sparked protests across the United States, as well as demonstrations of solidarity in many countries around the world
Getty
21/50 4 June 2020
Protestors march from Windsor Castle in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement
Getty
22/50 3 June 2020
People wearing face masks hold banners in Hyde Park during a Black Lives Matter protest following the death of George Floyd who died in police custody in Minneapolis
Reuters
23/50 2 June 2020
Street artist Nath Murdoch touches up his anti-racism mural in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire
PA
24/50 1 June 2020
Customers socially distance themselves as they queue to enter Ikea in Warrington. The store opening saw large queues of people and traffic on adjacent roads as it reopened after the lockdown. The furniture and housewares chain reopened its stores across England and Northern Ireland subject to several restrictions, keeping its restaurants closed and asking customers to shop alone
Getty
25/50 31 May 2020
A man wearing a protective face mask kneels in front of police officers during a protest against the death in Minneapolis police custody of African-American man George Floyd near the U.S. Embassy, London, Britai
Reuters
26/50 30 May 2020
Visitors at Grassholme Reservoir in Lunedale, Co Durham are able to cross an ancient packhorse bridge as work on the dam wall means water levels have dropped signifcantly to reveal this monument of the pas
UK
27/50 29 May 2020
British Tennis player Maia Lumsden in action at Bridge of Allan Tennis Club. People can meet family and friends outdoors and play sports such as golf and tennis again as the country is moving into phase one of the Scottish Government’s plan for gradually lifting lockdown
PA
28/50 28 May 2020
A police frogman, searches for a weapon in Abington Lake in in Northampton
Getty
29/50 27 May 2020
Prime Minister Boris Johnson appears before the Liaison Committee via Zoom from the cabinet room at 10 Downing Street, amid the coronavirus
10 Downing Street/Reuters
30/50 26 May 2020
Members of the public relax on the beach at Botany Bay in Margate
Getty
31/50 25 May 2020
Dominic Cummings, senior aide to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, makes a statement inside 10 Downing Street, London, over allegations he breached coronavirus lockdown restrictions
AP
32/50 24 May 2020
A demonstrator holds a sign reading ‘Why are you above the law?’ outside the house of Dominic Cummings in London, following allegations Cummings broke coronavirus lockdown rules by travelling across the country
Reuters
33/50 23 May 2020
People take a walk near Durdle Door as cows graze in Lulworth
Reuters
34/50 22 May 2020
Waves break onto a wall at Brighton beach
Reuters
35/50 21 May 2020
Cafe owner Francini Osorio serves customers in a trial phase during the coronavirus lockdown. Osorio has installed an air purifier and 35 clear shower curtains, which will divide customers and tables, in the Francini Cafe De Colombia, Worcester, ready for the re-opening of his business as lockdown restrictions are eased
PA
36/50 20 May 2020
People at Bournemouth beach in Dorset, as people flock to parks and beaches with lockdown measures eased. The Met Office has predicted the hottest day of the year
PA
37/50 19 May 2020
A dog jumps into the water as families relax at a Lido in London
AP
38/50 18 May 2020
A fan celebrates outside Celtic Park after Celtic were crowned champions of the Scottish Premiership. Hearts were also relegated after a decision was made to conclude the season with immediate effect
PA
39/50 17 May 2020
People on Brighton beach after the introduction of measures to bring the country out of lockdown
PA
40/50 16 May 2020
Police lead away Piers Corbyn, brother of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, as protesters gather in breach of lockdown rules in Hyde Park in London after the introduction of measures to bring the country out of lockdown.
PA
41/50 15 May 2020
Estonian freelance ballet dancer and choreographer, Eve Mutso performs her daily fitness routine near her home in Glasgow, Scotland
Getty
42/50 14 May 2020
Senior charge nurse Jan Ferguson views artwork “Theatre of Dott’s” by Kate Ive, inspired by Professor Norman Dott and his neurosurgery theatres at the Western General from 1960-2019. It is one of a number of artworks which sit on the walls of NHS Lothians’ Department of Clinical Neurosciences (DCN) which has been transferred into a purpose-built new home on the Little France campus in Edinburgh
PA
43/50 13 May 2020
Team GB’s karate athlete Jordan Thomas trains outside his apartment in Manchester
Reuters
44/50 12 May 2020
Nurses from central London hospitals protest on international nurses day about the chronic underfunding of the NHS and other issues surrounding the health service outside the gates of Downing Street, London
PA
45/50 11 May 2020
Waves crash at Tynemouth pier on the North East coast
PA
46/50 10 May 2020
A woman passes street art and a poster in East London
Reuters
47/50 9 May 2020
Police patrol the beach in Brighton
Getty
48/50 8 May 2020
The British Royal Air Force Red Arrows conduct a fly past over the statue of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in London to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE Day) in Britain
MOD/Reuters
49/50 7 May 2020
Team GB sailor Eilidh McIntyre during a training session at her home in Portsmouth
Reuters
50/50 6 May 2020
Labour Party leader Keir Starmer listens to Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaking during PMQs
UK Parliament/AFP/Getty
1/50 24 June 2020
People enjoy the hot weather on Margate beach
Reuters
2/50 23 June 2020
Tony Bennett the owner of The Devereux pub in Temple, London. Pub and hospitality bosses have cheered the Government’s proposals to allow customers through their doors again on July 4 as “a welcome relief”. PA Photo. Picture date: Tuesday June 23, 2020. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday that pubs, restaurants and cinemas will be able to reopen from July 4, with “one metre-plus” distancing measures in place
PA
3/50 22 June 2020
Police forensics officers carry out a search near Forbury Gardens, in Reading town centre, the scene of a multiple stabbing attack which took place at around 7pm on Saturday, leaving three people dead and another three seriously injured
PA
4/50 21 June 2020
Soccer Football – Premier League – Everton v Liverpool – Goodison Park, Liverpool, Britain – June 21, 2020 Children play football outside the stadium before the match, as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19)
Action Images via Reuters
5/50 20 June 2020
Arsenal’s midfielder Nicolas Pepe kneels before the Premier League match against Brighton and Hove Albion at the American Express Community Stadium in southern England
AFP via Getty
6/50 19 June 2020
Bianca Walkden during a training session at the National Taekwondo Centre in Manchester
PA
7/50 18 June 2020
French President Emmanuel Macron gestures about social distancing alongside Prime Minister Boris Johnson as he arrives at Downing Street for a meeting. Macron also visited London to commemorate the 80th anniversary of former French president Charles de Gaulle’s appeal to French people to resist the Nazi occupation during World War II
AFP/Getty
8/50 17 June 2020
Players kneel, as well as, having ‘Black Lives Matter’ in place of names on their shirts prior to the start of the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Sheffield United at Villa Park in Birmingham. The league resumed after its three-month suspension because of coronavirus
AP
9/50 16 June 2020
Motakhayyel ridden by Jim Crowley, right, wins the Buckingham Palace Handicap during day one of Royal Ascot. This year, the flat racing’s biggest meeting, is behind closed doors due to the coronavirus outbreak
PA
10/50 15 June 2020
Queues form at Primark at the Rushden Lakes shopping complex after the government relaxed coronavirus lockdown laws significantly, allowing zoos, safari parks and non-essential shops to open to visitors
Getty
11/50 14 June 2020
A man kneels at a commemoration to mark the third anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire in London. The fire claimed 72 lives on 14 June 2017
PA
12/50 13 June 2020
Protesters confront police in Whitehall near Parliament Square, during a protest by the Democratic Football Lads Alliance
PA
13/50 12 June 2020
A Black Lives Matter supporter sings to crowds who marched with her in front of the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square in London. The death of an African American man, George Floyd, while in the custody of Minneapolis police has sparked protests across the United States, as well as demonstrations of solidarity in many countries around the world
Getty
14/50 11 June 2020
Scouts show their support at the Lord Baden-Powell statue in Poole. The statue of Robert Baden-Powell on Poole Quay is to be placed in “safe storage” following concerns about his racial views
Getty
15/50 10 June 2020
Social distancing markers around the penguin enclosure at London Zoo. Staff have been preparing and are now ready for reopening next week with new signage, one-way trails for visitors to follow, and extra handwashing and sanitiser stations in place
PA
16/50 9 June 2020
Protestors hold placards and shout slogans during during a protest called by the Rhodes Must Fall campaign calling for the removal of the statue of British imperialist Cecil John Rhodes outside Oriel College, at the University of Oxford
AFP via Getty
17/50 8 June 2020
Hermione Wilson helps to install a new artwork at Jupiter Artland, Edinburgh, created as a tribute to the NHS titled “A Thousand Thank Yous” originally devised by the late Allan Kaprow which consists of colourful painted messages on cardboard and has been directed remotely by London-based artist Peter Liversidge
PA
18/50 7 June 2020
The Edward Colston statue has been pulled down by Black Lives Matter protesters in Bristol. Colston was a 17th century slave trader who has numerous landmarks named after him in Bristol
SWNS
19/50 6 June 2020
Children pose for their family in front of discarded placards fixed on a wall in Piccadilly Gardens after a Black Lives Matter demonstrations in Manchester. The death of an African-American man, George Floyd, while in the custody of Minneapolis police has sparked protests across the United States, as well as demonstrations of solidarity in many countries around the world
Getty
20/50 5 June 2020
Protesters kneel in Trafalgar Square during a Black Lives Matter demonstration in London, England. The death of an African-American man, George Floyd, while in the custody of Minneapolis police has sparked protests across the United States, as well as demonstrations of solidarity in many countries around the world
Getty
21/50 4 June 2020
Protestors march from Windsor Castle in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement
Getty
22/50 3 June 2020
People wearing face masks hold banners in Hyde Park during a Black Lives Matter protest following the death of George Floyd who died in police custody in Minneapolis
Reuters
23/50 2 June 2020
Street artist Nath Murdoch touches up his anti-racism mural in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire
PA
24/50 1 June 2020
Customers socially distance themselves as they queue to enter Ikea in Warrington. The store opening saw large queues of people and traffic on adjacent roads as it reopened after the lockdown. The furniture and housewares chain reopened its stores across England and Northern Ireland subject to several restrictions, keeping its restaurants closed and asking customers to shop alone
Getty
25/50 31 May 2020
A man wearing a protective face mask kneels in front of police officers during a protest against the death in Minneapolis police custody of African-American man George Floyd near the U.S. Embassy, London, Britai
Reuters
26/50 30 May 2020
Visitors at Grassholme Reservoir in Lunedale, Co Durham are able to cross an ancient packhorse bridge as work on the dam wall means water levels have dropped signifcantly to reveal this monument of the pas
UK
27/50 29 May 2020
British Tennis player Maia Lumsden in action at Bridge of Allan Tennis Club. People can meet family and friends outdoors and play sports such as golf and tennis again as the country is moving into phase one of the Scottish Government’s plan for gradually lifting lockdown
PA
28/50 28 May 2020
A police frogman, searches for a weapon in Abington Lake in in Northampton
Getty
29/50 27 May 2020
Prime Minister Boris Johnson appears before the Liaison Committee via Zoom from the cabinet room at 10 Downing Street, amid the coronavirus
10 Downing Street/Reuters
30/50 26 May 2020
Members of the public relax on the beach at Botany Bay in Margate
Getty
31/50 25 May 2020
Dominic Cummings, senior aide to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, makes a statement inside 10 Downing Street, London, over allegations he breached coronavirus lockdown restrictions
AP
32/50 24 May 2020
A demonstrator holds a sign reading ‘Why are you above the law?’ outside the house of Dominic Cummings in London, following allegations Cummings broke coronavirus lockdown rules by travelling across the country
Reuters
33/50 23 May 2020
People take a walk near Durdle Door as cows graze in Lulworth
Reuters
34/50 22 May 2020
Waves break onto a wall at Brighton beach
Reuters
35/50 21 May 2020
Cafe owner Francini Osorio serves customers in a trial phase during the coronavirus lockdown. Osorio has installed an air purifier and 35 clear shower curtains, which will divide customers and tables, in the Francini Cafe De Colombia, Worcester, ready for the re-opening of his business as lockdown restrictions are eased
PA
36/50 20 May 2020
People at Bournemouth beach in Dorset, as people flock to parks and beaches with lockdown measures eased. The Met Office has predicted the hottest day of the year
PA
37/50 19 May 2020
A dog jumps into the water as families relax at a Lido in London
AP
38/50 18 May 2020
A fan celebrates outside Celtic Park after Celtic were crowned champions of the Scottish Premiership. Hearts were also relegated after a decision was made to conclude the season with immediate effect
PA
39/50 17 May 2020
People on Brighton beach after the introduction of measures to bring the country out of lockdown
PA
40/50 16 May 2020
Police lead away Piers Corbyn, brother of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, as protesters gather in breach of lockdown rules in Hyde Park in London after the introduction of measures to bring the country out of lockdown.
PA
41/50 15 May 2020
Estonian freelance ballet dancer and choreographer, Eve Mutso performs her daily fitness routine near her home in Glasgow, Scotland
Getty
42/50 14 May 2020
Senior charge nurse Jan Ferguson views artwork “Theatre of Dott’s” by Kate Ive, inspired by Professor Norman Dott and his neurosurgery theatres at the Western General from 1960-2019. It is one of a number of artworks which sit on the walls of NHS Lothians’ Department of Clinical Neurosciences (DCN) which has been transferred into a purpose-built new home on the Little France campus in Edinburgh
PA
43/50 13 May 2020
Team GB’s karate athlete Jordan Thomas trains outside his apartment in Manchester
Reuters
44/50 12 May 2020
Nurses from central London hospitals protest on international nurses day about the chronic underfunding of the NHS and other issues surrounding the health service outside the gates of Downing Street, London
PA
45/50 11 May 2020
Waves crash at Tynemouth pier on the North East coast
PA
46/50 10 May 2020
A woman passes street art and a poster in East London
Reuters
47/50 9 May 2020
Police patrol the beach in Brighton
Getty
48/50 8 May 2020
The British Royal Air Force Red Arrows conduct a fly past over the statue of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in London to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE Day) in Britain
MOD/Reuters
49/50 7 May 2020
Team GB sailor Eilidh McIntyre during a training session at her home in Portsmouth
Reuters
50/50 6 May 2020
Labour Party leader Keir Starmer listens to Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaking during PMQs
UK Parliament/AFP/Getty
Challenged on why Tory voters in Doncaster or Ashfield did not have similar kinds of access to government as the billionaire, Mr Zahawi replied: “If people go to a fundraiser in their local area in Doncaster for the Conservative Party they’d be sitting next to MPs and other people in their local authority, and can interact with different parts of the authority.”
He went on: “The important thing by the way is the access didn’t buy this billionaire a decision. The secretary of state very clearly said to Richard Desmond ‘I can’t see you, I cannot have this meeting.
“Yes of course there was access because there was a dinner party that Robert Jenrick didn’t know he was going to sit next to Richard Desmond in, but Robert Jenrick also said those messages that he released – ‘I can’t have this meeting with you’.”
Emails from January, released last night, show Mr Jenrick was determined to issue a decision on the Westferry Printworks development the following day to prevent billionaire Mr Desmond from being forced to pay a new Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL).
Mr Jenrick overruled the local authority and the planning inspector to approve the scheme for 1,500 houses in January, only weeks before Mr Desmond personally donated £12,000 to the Conservative Party.
The latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox
The housing secretary later had to reverse the decision after legal action from the council, conceding the decision was “unlawful by reason of apparent bias”.
When put to him that emails from officials released on Wednesday showed that Mr Jenrick pushed for approval to be made quickly, Mr Zahawi added: “There is a very important word there – ‘viability’ of the scheme.
“That was another reason in the information released yesterday, that was a concern to Robert Jenrick – he wanted to make sure the scheme gets built, that it is viable and that affordable housing is delivered.”
He added: “Viability is incredibly important. Getting stuff built is incredibly important to Robert Jenrick – that was his motivation.
“But when there was a perception of bias, he pulled back on this, pulled the plug on it and will allow a different minister to decide the scheme.”
Lord Bob Kerslake, a former head of the Civil Service, said the relationship between Housing Secretary and the wealthy former newspaper raised questions about the planning process.
Lord Kerslake, an adviser to Jeremy Corbyn when he was Labour leader, told the BBC: “I’m pleased the documents have come out but I do think they have raised some troubling issues, I have to say, about access and influence.
“I don’t for a moment suggest the minister took his decision simply because of a donation to the Conservative Party.
“But the fact is, for the price of a dinner, the developer was able to present his scheme to the minister, follow up with texts and seek to influence the decision.”
Responding Mr Zahawi’s comments, Ed Davey, the acting leader of the Liberal Democrats, said: “It is scandalous to suggest that the most appropriate way for the public to lobby Conservative MPs is to pour money into Tory party coffers. Members of Parliament are there to serve all their constituents, not just those who can write them big cheques.
“The prime minister now must show leadership. He must sack Robert Jenrick for his role in the Westferry scandal and urgently clarify that he does not agree with the position taken by Nadhim Zahawi on the radio this morning.”
