Reform UK head of policy Zia Yusuf said the party’s former leader in Wales who was jailed for taking bribes “is a guy which, far as we’re concerned, is ancient history”.
Nathan Gill was sentenced to 10-and-a-half years after he was paid £40,000 to make pro-Russian statements in the European Parliament.
Put to him on Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programme that there are people who will ask why should they trust what Reform UK says about Russia “given that one of their people took money from Russians”, Mr Yusuf said: “I think that would be an incredibly unreasonable position to take.
“Nathan Gill, what he did was treasonous. It was horrific. It was awful. He’s now been dealt with by the authorities. He deserves the sentence that he’s gotten.
“But as you’ve just said, this is a guy which, far as we’re concerned, is ancient history.
“I’ve never met him. I’d never heard of him, actually, until I saw his name sadly in the newspapers.
“I think it is unreasonable to besmirch everybody else at Reform, the millions of people around the country who support Nigel (Farage) and support our party.”
It comes after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer challenged Reform UK leader Nigel Farage to set up an investigation into Reform UK’s Russian links, adding that Gill’s action “undermines our country”.
Speaking to Sky News in South Africa at the G20 Summit, Sir Keir said: “Nigel Farage, he often has a lot to say. What he needs to do is to launch an investigation into his party to understand how that happened.
“This is a serious sentence that has been imposed, over 10 years. It’s a very serious issue.
“How did that happen, that this was happening in his party? And what other links are there between Reform and Russia?”
Mr Farage said in response that Sir Keir needs to investigate Labour’s links with the Chinese Communist Party.
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said Mr Farage was previously paid to be on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s TV channel, Russia Today, adding: “We must all ask – where do his loyalties really lie?”
Speaking after Gill was jailed, Sir Ed said: “A traitor was at the very top of Reform UK, aiding and abetting a foreign adversary.
“Nigel Farage and his party are a danger to national security.
“Nigel Farage himself was previously paid to be on Putin’s TV channel, Russia Today, and said he was the world leader he admires the most.
“We must all ask – where do his loyalties really lie? We need a full investigation into Russian interference in our politics.”
Gill, 52, of Anglesey, North Wales, was a member of the UK Independence Party, then followed Mr Farage to the Brexit Party and ultimately was – for a brief period before his spectacular fall from grace – Reform UK’s leader in Wales.
He pleaded guilty to eight counts of bribery on dates between December 6, 2018 and July 18, 2019.
