A UK court on Friday sentenced former Member of the European Parliament (MEP) and ex-Welsh leader of the Reform UK party, Nathan Gill, to 10 years and six months in prison for accepting bribes to deliver pro-Russia speeches in the European Parliament.
Gill had pleaded guilty in September at London’s Old Bailey to receiving thousands of euros from Ukrainian politician Oleg Voloshyn in exchange for making scripted statements and television appearances that criticized Ukraine’s democracy and President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“You abused a position of significant authority and trust,” Judge Bobbie Cheema-Grubb said, adding that Gill’s actions “fundamentally compromised the integrity of a supranational legislative body.”
The judge noted that Gill accepted payments from foreign nationals, used scripted materials as his own, and involved other MEPs in the scheme.
Gill served as an MEP from 2014 to 2020 with the Eurosceptic UKIP party, led by current Reform UK leader Nigel Farage.
He also briefly led Reform UK Wales from March to May 2021 and was a member of the Welsh parliament, the Senedd, from 2016 to 2017.
He pled guilty to eight counts of accepting bribes between December 2018 and July 2019.
Voloshyn, the Ukrainian politician involved, was later sanctioned by the United States and indicted for treason in Ukraine.
Police seized Gill’s phone in September 2021 while he was travelling to Russia for a scientific conference.
Investigators discovered WhatsApp messages from September 2018 in which Gill agreed to make introductions in the European Parliament and attempted to influence other MEPs.
Nigel Farage, whose Reform UK party is currently polling strongly in Britain, stated he was unaware of Gill’s actions.
Gill is no longer a member of Reform UK, though the case could affect Farage politically, particularly as he seeks to gain control in the Welsh parliament in next May’s local elections.
The party has recently faced criticism, including the suspension of its only member in the Welsh parliament for using a racial slur.
