A whistleblower says a focus group authorised by Rishi Sunak under a £500,000 taxpayer-funded deal was an attempt to argue the Tory party should not be blamed for the cost of living crisis.
The participant has told The Independent of his “disgust” over what he described as an attempt to frame an argument that the government could not have done more to prevent the crisis.
On Friday Rishi Sunak entered the Tory leadership race, vowing to “restore trust” and “reunite the country” after Boris Johnson’s scandal-tainted reign.
“I’m standing to be the next leader of the Conservative Party and your prime minister. Let’s restore trust, rebuild the economy and reunite the country,” Mr Sunak tweeted.
The Treasury has defended the focus groups against criticism of the vast cost by arguing they “measure the understanding of policies” – but the man said he was never asked about any policies.
Instead, the group was told its purpose was to “determine whether the Conservative party can be held accountable for the cost of living problems you have experienced”, he alleged.
The seven participants, at the 90-minute session held in the West Midlands in late April, were then asked if they agreed that “no government could have acted to prevent the cost of living crisis”.
“I was shocked and disgusted by what happened, which seemed to be an attempt to indoctrinate the group,” said the whistleblower, who was required to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
“It left me feeling very dirty, that – although I don’t know exactly what they were looking for from me in terms of soundbites – I had helped feed their machine.”
The disclosures will fuel criticism that the £500,000 deal – for two focus groups and one national online poll each week until next February – is for the benefit of the Tory party, yet funded by the taxpayer.
It follows a report, after the Budget in March, that Mr Sunak “polled voters for months to decide how to sell his tax rises” – quoting a Treasury official saying: “When you mention the word honesty the polls go up by 10-20 per cent.”
Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, said: “The eye-witness account of these sessions appears to bear no resemblance to the embarrassment of excuses the Treasury has given to defend the indefensible.
“There are now serious questions for ministers to answer as to why public money has apparently been misappropriated for party political propaganda.”
Ms Rayner added: “Why should the public have to stump for Rishi Sunak’s vanity projects during a cost of living crisis?”
The Independent was contacted by the whistleblower after the £500,000 contract was revealed. He has provided his name, but it cannot be disclosed because of the agreement he signed.
We have seen proof of his participation in the form of an email sent by a market research company called Podengo, on behalf of “our client Deltapoll” – the firm with which the Treasury has its contract.
The confirmation of his acceptance onto the focus group gives no clue about the questions to be asked, describing it only as “Project Vox”. Participants were each paid £50.
The man, a charity worker in his thirties who has taken part in several dozen focus groups, added: “The purpose appeared to be the Conservative party and how to improve its image.
“It was very, very different to other market research groups I have taken part in, which were more neutral. I had never come across this before.”
At one point, the group was asked if it “believed” the official inflation rate figure of, at the time, 8 per cent, although the man said it was not clear why.
It was also asked about the general idea of a windfall tax on energy firms, but not about Mr Sunak’s policy – a U-turn which was only announced one month later.
The man said he disputed the implication that ministers could not have acted differently over the cost of living crisis, but was given the impression that such interventions were not welcome.
The Treasury acknowledged that it did run the focus group he attended, in the West Midlands in late April, but insisted it complied with procurement regulations.
A spokesperson said: “The Treasury conducts regular polling to help develop and measure the impact and understanding of its policies.
“This polling is run by the civil service and is politically neutral with no reference to any political parties.”
