View all newsletters
Sign up to our newsletters

Support 110 years of independent journalism.

  1. Politics
20 April 2023

The list of ministerial interests is a cosy affair

The register shows Rishi Sunak is not the only one with family ties to companies close to government.

By The Chatterer

Rishi Sunak often talks about the importance of hard-working families, and judging by the list of ministerial interests that is more than a political slogan.

Yesterday saw the highly anticipated publication of his government’s ministerial interests following Rishi Sunak’s failure to properly disclose his wife’s stakes in Koru Kids, a childminding agency that is set to benefit from childcare measures in the Spring Budget.

Among Sunak’s declarations is that his wife is indeed a venture-capitalist investor with fingers in a number of pies, while a few more surprising entries caught the Chatterer’s eye.

The first was that of Lucy Frazer, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whose husband is the CEO of a company with an extensive government contract for the provision of recruitment services to multiple departments, including the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and a number of its arm’s length bodies.

On closer inspection, the contract started in January 2018, only a week after Frazer took up her first role in government as a junior minister in the Department for Justice. The contract will continue until 2024.

Select and enter your email address Your weekly guide to the best writing on ideas, politics, books and culture every Saturday. The best way to sign up for The Saturday Read is via saturdayread.substack.com The New Statesman's quick and essential guide to the news and politics of the day. The best way to sign up for Morning Call is via morningcall.substack.com Our Thursday ideas newsletter, delving into philosophy, criticism, and intellectual history. The best way to sign up for The Salvo is via thesalvo.substack.com Stay up to date with NS events, subscription offers & updates. Weekly analysis of the shift to a new economy from the New Statesman's Spotlight on Policy team. The best way to sign up for The Green Transition is via spotlightonpolicy.substack.com
  • Administration / Office
  • Arts and Culture
  • Board Member
  • Business / Corporate Services
  • Client / Customer Services
  • Communications
  • Construction, Works, Engineering
  • Education, Curriculum and Teaching
  • Environment, Conservation and NRM
  • Facility / Grounds Management and Maintenance
  • Finance Management
  • Health - Medical and Nursing Management
  • HR, Training and Organisational Development
  • Information and Communications Technology
  • Information Services, Statistics, Records, Archives
  • Infrastructure Management - Transport, Utilities
  • Legal Officers and Practitioners
  • Librarians and Library Management
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • OH&S, Risk Management
  • Operations Management
  • Planning, Policy, Strategy
  • Printing, Design, Publishing, Web
  • Projects, Programs and Advisors
  • Property, Assets and Fleet Management
  • Public Relations and Media
  • Purchasing and Procurement
  • Quality Management
  • Science and Technical Research and Development
  • Security and Law Enforcement
  • Service Delivery
  • Sport and Recreation
  • Travel, Accommodation, Tourism
  • Wellbeing, Community / Social Services
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
THANK YOU

[See also: Why Rishi Sunak is taxed less than you are]

The second is that of Neil O’Brien MP, minister for primary care, whose wife works for Circle Healthcare, a private company that also has a contract with the NHS. According to its website, Circle Healthcare has over 50 private hospitals across the UK, and advertises that NHS patients can opt to have their operations at any of its sites, covered in full by the NHS.

Finally, the security minister Tom Tugenhadt’s entry revealed that he has a family member who is a vice-president at Thales, a global technology company specialising in defence and security. Thales received a government contract in January this year, after it was added to the UK government’s G-Cloud procurement framework for the fifth consecutive time.

The company states on its website that, “Thales will supply over 20 services within the categories of cloud hosting, cloud support and cloud software. G-Cloud 13 also now adds new Thales services such as assured encryption, secure trusted access and cloud HSM. Thales are a trusted cyber solutions provider for digital transformation, particularly where safety and security are critical.”

[See also: Why won’t Labour say it will tax Rishi Sunak and the super-rich more?]

Content from our partners
The promise of prevention
How Labour hopes to make the UK a leader in green energy
Is now the time to rethink health and care for older people? With Age UK

Topics in this article : , , ,
Select and enter your email address Your weekly guide to the best writing on ideas, politics, books and culture every Saturday. The best way to sign up for The Saturday Read is via saturdayread.substack.com The New Statesman's quick and essential guide to the news and politics of the day. The best way to sign up for Morning Call is via morningcall.substack.com Our Thursday ideas newsletter, delving into philosophy, criticism, and intellectual history. The best way to sign up for The Salvo is via thesalvo.substack.com Stay up to date with NS events, subscription offers & updates. Weekly analysis of the shift to a new economy from the New Statesman's Spotlight on Policy team. The best way to sign up for The Green Transition is via spotlightonpolicy.substack.com
  • Administration / Office
  • Arts and Culture
  • Board Member
  • Business / Corporate Services
  • Client / Customer Services
  • Communications
  • Construction, Works, Engineering
  • Education, Curriculum and Teaching
  • Environment, Conservation and NRM
  • Facility / Grounds Management and Maintenance
  • Finance Management
  • Health - Medical and Nursing Management
  • HR, Training and Organisational Development
  • Information and Communications Technology
  • Information Services, Statistics, Records, Archives
  • Infrastructure Management - Transport, Utilities
  • Legal Officers and Practitioners
  • Librarians and Library Management
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • OH&S, Risk Management
  • Operations Management
  • Planning, Policy, Strategy
  • Printing, Design, Publishing, Web
  • Projects, Programs and Advisors
  • Property, Assets and Fleet Management
  • Public Relations and Media
  • Purchasing and Procurement
  • Quality Management
  • Science and Technical Research and Development
  • Security and Law Enforcement
  • Service Delivery
  • Sport and Recreation
  • Travel, Accommodation, Tourism
  • Wellbeing, Community / Social Services
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
THANK YOU