Reform MS is registered at Companies House as living in Turkmenistan

Martin Shipton

A Reform UK Senedd Member is listed at Companies House as being a resident of Turkmenistan, one of the most repressive countries in the world.

Steven Rodaway was elected to represent Gŵyr Abertawe in May’s Senedd election. In order to stand as a Senedd candidate, it is necessary to have one’s main address in Wales.

However, Mr Rodaway is registered at Companies House as a designated member of a limited liability partnership called Auriol Event Leadership.

His place of residence is given as Turkmenistan, a former republic of the Soviet Union in Central Asia.

Mr Rodaway has two partners in the firm, one of whom, Michael Wright, also gives his place of residence as Turkmenistan, while the other, Jose Andres Dhooma, is said to have his place of residence in England.

The firm was established in 2016 and filed its last set of accounts for the year ending 30 March 2026, at which time its net assets were said to amount to £13,748.

Auriol Event Leadership was dissolved last week, on 3 November 2026.

Mr Rodaway was a director of a company called Event Leadership Ltd, which was wound up in 2018. Its final annual accounts were for the year ending 30 September 2016. According to a document filed with Companies House, the company had a turnover of £53,101, with the cost of sales being £53,083. Its gross profit was therefore £18 for the year. The company was dissolved in 2018. Mr Rodaway’s place of residence was again stated to be Turkmenistan.

Amnesty International’s most recent report on Turkmenistan, published in 2025, stated: “The authorities maintained a tight grip on information, punished critics and censored internet access.

“Independent voices faced prosecution, travel bans and other reprisals, while dissidents abroad risked arrest and potential deportation.

“Enforced disappearances persisted, with some prisoners not being released after the expiration of their terms.

“Torture and other ill-treatment in detention remained widespread, with no independent oversight. Same-sex sexual relations between men remained criminalised.

“The country’s carbon-intensive economy undermined its climate commitments amid growing gas extraction. Water scarcity remained a serious issue threatening food security.”

Disappeared

Human Rights Watch also published a report on the country for 2025. It included a section that stated: “Dozens of individuals arrested more than two decades ago remained forcibly disappeared in the Turkmen prison system. Authorities refused to provide information on their whereabouts to the public or to allow families and lawyers to have contact. The fate and whereabouts of at least 21 individuals whose prison sentences expired between 2017 and 2024 remain unknown. In early 2025, authorities disclosed the whereabouts of 12 forcibly disappeared individuals who had served criminal sentences; five were confirmed dead.

“In June, Turkmen authorities failed to release Murat Dushemov, a civic activist, when he finished serving his initial four-year sentence, instead holding him in pre-trial detention for three months on fabricated allegations of assaulting another prisoner. On September 16, a court in Turkmenabad sentenced Dushemov to an additional eight years in prison in a closed trial on unknown charges.

“Many others wrongfully imprisoned remain behind bars on bogus, politically motivated charges.”

Explain

We wrote to Mr Rodaway, stating: “Our attention has been drawn to the fact that you are an LLP Designated Member of Auriol Event Leadership LLP. On Companies House records, your place of residence is given as Turkmenistan. Can you explain why that is the case? What were you doing in Turkmenistan, which is regarded as one of the most repressive countries in the world?

“In addition, can you explain how you were able to stand for the Senedd in May this year, given that according to up-to-date Companies House records, your place of residence is Turkmenistan, not Wales?”

Mr Rodaway did not respond.