Reform UK lead candidate threatens Nation.Cymru and former party colleague

Martin Shipton

A Reform UK lead candidate is trying to bully Nation.Cymru and a councillor who left Reform after raising concerns about her candidacy by issuing threats of legal action.

Both Nation.Cymru and Wrexham councillor Robert Ian Williams have been threatened by Cristiana Emsley, who tops Reform’s list of candidates in the Fflint Wrecsam constituency.

Cllr Williams has also been threatened by Ms Emsley that she will make a complaint to the Ombudsman about comments he made, but he has been advised there would be no grounds for the Ombudsman to take a case against him forward.

In 2022 Ms Emsey featured in widespread publicity arising out of a disciplinary investigation into Superintendent Beverly Gill of Cleveland Police.

The Daily Mail story into the matter stated: “The ex-police chief who led a disastrous sex abuse probe into Ted Heath had a ‘personal and undisclosed’ relationship with his former ethics boss, a disciplinary hearing has heard.

“Mike Veale’s relationship with Christiana Emsley was cited as the key reason for a ‘biased’ and ‘unfair’ investigation into a senior officer working at Cleveland Police, dubbed ‘the worst force in the UK.’

“Mr Veale and Ms Emsley were accused of launching a ‘flawed’ probe into Superintendent Beverley Gill – who was accused of covering up sex scandals at the force, but had her case thrown out at a disciplinary hearing in Stockton-on-Tees.

“In a statement following the ruling, Ms Gill suggested Ms Emsley had been ‘influenced’ by Mr Veale, who she said had ‘improper control’ over the probe as a result.

“Mr Veale is best known as the officer who, while at Wiltshire Police, launched a sex abuse investigation against the late former Prime Minister Sir Edward Heath based on ‘evidence’ provided by serial liar Carl Beech, who is now in prison.

“He later became head of Cleveland Police and opened the investigation into Ms Gill in 2018. However he stepped down in 2019 and is currently facing gross misconduct proceedings for allegedly breaching professional standards during his time there. [The case against him was upheld].

“Ms Emsley was Cleveland’s first civilian head of Standards and Ethics and worked under Mr Veale in an effort to clean up the force’s tarnished image. But she was suspended in 2020 and is currently involved in an employment tribunal against Cleveland police.

“Ms Gill claimed the investigation against her was ordered by Mr Veale to make an example of her and arose from his relationship with Ms Emsley.

“It had been claimed Ms Gill turned a blind eye to Detective Inspector Simon Hurwood as he sexually harassed 21 junior colleagues over a 14-year period, eventually leading to him being sacked in disgrace.

“But the gross misconduct case against her, which began three years ago, was finally thrown out.

“In a statement read to the hearing by her barrister Hugh Davies, QC, Ms Gill launched a blistering attack on both Mr Veale and Ms Emsley.

“She said: ‘The history of the investigation against me which led to the bringing of these proceedings has been biased, flawed and inherently unfair. I have been used as the warning to others sought by former Chief Constable Mike Veale. Improper control and influence on the investigation appears to have arisen because of his personal and undisclosed relationship with Christiana Emsley. Witness statements display loaded questions, witnesses disliked me based on my direct management style and statements are loaded with opinion, rumour and hearsay evidence. The conduct of this investigation by Cleveland police has seriously compromised the outcome of the final IOPC-led investigation.’

“The case against Ms Gill had to be abandoned, partly because both Mr Veale and Ms Emsley allegedly blocked the disclosure of vital documents.

“Following the case, Ms Gill said: ‘I have strenuously denied all the claims made against me throughout, and have challenged the process that has been followed.

‘I question the motivation behind the investigation, which I believe has lacked any legitimacy, something my legal representatives have continuously raised.

‘Cleveland Police has failed to respond to these formal concerns and have consistently failed to share material it holds, which supports my case.

‘This investigation began in 2018, I have been suspended from serving communities for no proven reason and have suffered ill health as a result.

‘I am pleased that this process has now come to end, and that despite being put through four years of investigation and being prevented from doing the job that I love, all allegations against me have been dismissed.’”

Background

We asked Reform UK to comment.

A Reform source said: “By way of background, Cristiana denies having had such a relationship. She was a whistleblower within that organisation, and a tribunal resulted in her receiving a six-figure settlement.”

We responded: “We have been unable to find any record of such a decision made by an Employment Tribunal. Do you have evidence of it? Is Reform satisfied with the robustness of the vetting it undertook into Ms Emsley?”

We did not receive an answer.

Last week Wrexham councillor Robert Ian Williams, who was due to be a Senedd candidate, resigned from Reform after stating that he had raised concerns about Ms Emsley’s candidacy. He wrote: “I was … deemed to have offended another candidate when I raised in private the issues Nation Cymru highlighted. When you work as a group of six candidates, everyone should be up front and transparent. You should not find out from a third party. However Reform said they had checked, and that the person was clear.”

Cllr Williams has also had a threatening letter from Ms Emsley.

In response to Ms Emsley’s threatening letter to us, we sent her a series of questions: “You assert that the articles we have published are defamatory, and yet their content is very largely based on previous press reports published in the Daily Mail, the Northern Echo and other publications including policeprofessional.com

“Have you threatened these publications with litigation or, indeed, initiated any proceedings against them?

“If so, what was the outcome, and if not why not?

“Before Nation.Cymru published its first article relating to you, we asked for a comment from Reform UK’s press office. We published the response received and asked a follow-up question that was not answered. This email exchange was referenced in the article that was published.

“We could find no articles reporting the outcome of your dispute with Cleveland Police.

“On July 2 2021 the Northern Echo reported: “An investigation into allegations of misconduct involving a police force’s civilian head of its standards and ethics department is continuing a year after she was suspended from the role. Cristiana Emsley was removed from her position at Cleveland Police at the end of June last year and is waiting to learn the outcome of the probe into allegations made against her.”

“For how long were you suspended before a resolution was arrived at? “What were the terms under which the matter was resolved, and could you provide me with written evidence of this please.

“Did you ask the publications like the Daily Mail, which had previously reported on the case, to publish an article specifying the outcome, and if not why not?

“Why have you been content to let matters stand as they were – with the resolution unreported – until you entered the public spotlight again as a Senedd candidate for Reform UK?”

Refused to respond

Ms Emsley refused to respond to any of the questions, so we wrote to her again stating: “In response to your latest email to Nation.Cymru’s CEO, which I presume was drafted by the Reform-supporting barrister Mark Richardson (correct me if I am wrong), I make the following points.

“You are the lead candidate for Reform UK in a Senedd constituency and Nation.Cymru has every right to scrutinise you.

“We have asked you a number of questions that you have declined to answer. We are entitled to write about your refusal to engage.

“Please answer the questions posed in my previous email. In addition, what is your connection with Wales, what do you know of its politics and communities and how did you come to be a Reform candidate?”

In her further response, Ms Emsley did not deny that Mr Richardson had drafted her letter, but again failed to answer any of our questions.

Last year Mr Richardson, who doubles as a barrister and a Reform activist, sought to bully Nation.Cymru after we named the party’s director of communications as implicated in the events that led to the proposed suspension of Reform MS Laura Anne Jones from the Senedd.

Ed Sumner told a Nation.Cymru reporter he had been told by Ms Jones to instruct staff to “diddle” her mileage claims.

Mr Richardon wrote to Nation’s editor claiming that Mr Sumner’s privacy rights had been infringed and demanding that we remove his name from the story. The barrister then initiated a legal process that hasn’t been pursued since.