Peer linked to apparent cash-for-access venture

A Labour member of the House of Lords offered access to ministers during discussions about a commercial deal worth £25,000, an undercover investigation can reveal.

- Henry Dyer Rob Evans

Lord Evans of Watford, 82, was recorded also explaining to undercover reporters - posing as property developers looking to lobby the government - how to approach Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister and housing secretary.

The peer said he was prepared to support the developers as he was keen to help the government build much-needed houses. But he appeared willing to break Lords rules by offering access to ministers and other peers in discussions with the developers about a £25,000 sponsorship of a commercial event in parliament run by his son.

Lord Evans said the way to reach Rayner was not "directly" but through a more junior housing minister to get "the lower ranks, so to speak, on side".

The undercover reporters posed as representatives of property investors who wanted to turn old department stores into homes. Legislation introduced by the Conservative government simplified the planning rules on such conversions, and there are tax breaks for such a change of use. The reporters told the peer they wanted to ensure the Labour government retained these rules.

An online meeting with Lord Evans took place six days before Christmas. It followed weeks of messages and two Zoom calls with his son, Richard Evans, about the sponsorship.

During these earlier discussions, Richard, 56, proposed creating opportunities, alongside the event, to meet ministers in parliament. He made it clear the payment of £25,000 to his company for the sponsorship had to happen first. He stated on several occasions that his father had done nothing wrong. He also suggested in one online meeting: "There's nothing untoward about [the proposal]. It's basically thinking creatively."

Over a series of calls he implied several times that the deal could be viewed the wrong way, at one point saying he could not write anything down as his proposal "looks dodgy".