The lobbying industry has long been accused of exerting undue influence over British politics, but new allegations against major firm CT Group suggest an even more insidious form of payment-for-influence. An undercover investigation by The Guardian reveals that CT Group, co-founded by Lynton Crosby, a key figure in several Conservative Party election campaigns, has been offering secret payments to journalists for favourable coverage of its clients.
CT Group allegedly told an undercover reporter that it had previously paid journalists to place stories that appeared independent. The firm reportedly offered hundreds of pounds in cash incentives, particularly concerning a property industry client, and indicated that these arrangements would grant CT Group increased editorial control over the content.
The investigation was initiated after Gavin Stollar, head of CT's real estate division and a Liberal Democrat activist, approached a freelance journalist with an offer of payment for a piece about the challenges faced by the housebuilding industry due to the Building Safety Regulator. The intention was reportedly to highlight the human impact of the UK's housing shortage and suggest the regulator was exacerbating the problem, with CT Group offering research assistance and human case studies.
Further discussions with CT Group staff proposed that the journalist could be paid to write stories for newspapers as part of the firm's work for Live-In Guardians, a property guardianship company. One staff member was quoted as saying, "You can do it either way. We don't have to pay you, and you just go off and do how you normally do. Or, we can pay you, but we get more control over it." An offer of "£100 for every story that is successfully published (national or trade)" was also allegedly made.
CT Group has a turnover of £40 million and has issued a statement refuting the claims, stating that the events have been "deliberately mischaracterised". The company asserts that it did not engage or pay the undercover journalist for any work. This investigation comes at a time when public affairs and political consulting firms in the UK are under heightened scrutiny.