The ministerial code imposes a duty on ministers to comply with a set of ethical standards including upholding principles around openness and honesty.
The crux of Magnus’ investigation into Simons — and particularly any decision about whether he has broken the ministerial code — is likely to focus on Simons’ behavior while he has been a serving minister.
This indicates that Magnus’ decision will be based on Simons’ statements in recent weeks, and whether they were misleading, rather than the events of 2023. However, Magnus could compile evidence about what happened in 2023 in order to support his decision.
When the allegations first surfaced, Simons initially said APCO Worldwide was asked to investigate whether stories about the group were based on emails obtained in a hack of the U.K. political finance watchdog, the Electoral Commission. He later said the firm had “gone beyond” what it had been asked to do by including “unnecessary” personal information about journalists.
A copy of the contract, seen by POLITICO, which was signed between APCO Worldwide and Labour Together makes no mention of the hack. The lobbying firm was tasked with producing “a body of evidence that could be packaged up for use in the media in order to create narratives that would proactively undermine any future attacks on Labour Together.”
Simons accidentally revealed the investigation by the PM’s ethics adviser shortly before it was announced Monday, by mistakenly sending a message to more than 200 Labour MPs who entered parliament in 2024.