Sergei & the Westminster Spy Ring

As this tale of spies and influence at the heart of Westminster draws to a close, Carole, Peter and Sergei reflect on the story they’ve fought to uncover for so long. Meanwhile, The Guardian’s international correspondent Luke Harding shares his analysis of what Russian diplomats were up to in London. From the world of shadows, the former head of Estonian intelligence service, Rainer Saks, offers his perspective about the highly sociable “diplomat” Sergey Nalobin, and the whole Russian secret operation to interfere in the British democratic process.And we talk about what we can do to learn the whole truth. The highly important “impact case” at the ECHR brought by The Citizens and MPs to force a proper enquiry into the Russian interference in British politics. Our legal team shares their views about the urgency for this action. Plus Carole and Peter have one more call to make…A Project Citizen productionTo find out more about the story and issues it raises visit www.the-citizens.comPresented by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter JukesWritten by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter Jukes with Ruth AbrahamsProducer and Sound Design: Ruth AbrahamsStudio Producer: Sean Byrne RobertsLocation Producers: Sheridan Flynn and Manasa Narayanan Original Music: Phil ChannellMixed: Nigel AppletonSergei continues to confront the West’s complacency towards oppressive regimes. Please consider supporting his self-funded research into how hundreds of European sustainable funds were misused to invest in the Putin regime just before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine: gofund.me/4358bf68 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Carole, Peter and Sergei are closing on the core of the Russian Westminster plot as they untangle the secrets around the parliamentary Russia Report. With Dominic Grieve, the former Conservative Attorney General and chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament, which produced the groundbreaking report, and two of the Committee’s key witnesses, Edward Lucas and Christopher Steele, they discover almost everything we need to know to answer some of the big questions about the significance of the Russia covert interference operation in the British democratic processes. And about the lengths to which the powers that be, for their own political reasons, went to cover this whole thing up from the watchful eye of the British electorate. In this episode you also hear the voices of journalist and author, Catherine Belton, writer and historian, Anne Applebaum and former Intelligence and Security Committee members Stewart Hosie and Kevan Jones.Sergei and the Westminster Spy Ring will be taking a short break and will return soon to conclude this season.A Project Citizen productionTo find out more about the story and issues it raises visit www.the-citizens.comPresented by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter JukesWritten by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter JukesProducer and Sound Design: Ruth AbrahamsStudio Producer: Sean Byrne RobertsLocation Producers: Sheridan Flynn and Manasa NarayananOriginal Music: Phil ChannellMixed: Nigel Appleton Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Relations between Russia and the Conservative-led British government are being pushed to the brink. In Salisbury, former KGB officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia are found unconscious on a park bench, poisoned by the radioactive nerve agent Novichok. The attack sends shockwaves through Britain and Europe, while the suspected perpetrators are flaunted in a prime time TV interview on Russia Today, convincing Sergei Cristo that his former homeland is now run like a mafia state.NATO countries respond by expelling swathes of Russian diplomats and spies. So why does the UK’s foreign secretary shake off his security detail to party in Italy with his pal, the Russian oligarch Evgeny Lebedev, just one month after this critical incident? Tensions are rising and a demand for answers about Russian interference in British politics growing. But it seems that powerful forces are determined to keep the truth buried.Episodes drop weekly!A Project Citizen productionTo find out more about the story and issues it raises visit www.the-citizens.comPresented by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter JukesWritten by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter JukesProducer and Sound Design: Ruth AbrahamsStudio Producer: Sean Byrne RobertsLocation Producers: Sheridan Flynn and Manasa NarayananOriginal Music: Phil ChannellMixed: Nigel Appleton Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sergei Cristo circles back to his first meeting with Nalobin at the Carlton Club in London and the newspaper article that had got the Russian diplomat’s attention. How could this story about a suspected Russian honey pot be linked to activity around the Russian Embassy during the Brexit campaign? And what is a mysterious man introducing himself as Oleg doing at the UKIP party conference at Doncaster race track in 2015? It’s time to tie up some loose ends. Episodes drop weekly!A Project Citizen productionTo find out more about the story and issues it raises visit www.the-citizens.comPresented by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter JukesWritten by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter JukesProducer and Sound Design: Ruth AbrahamsStudio Producer: Sean Byrne RobertsLocation Producers: Sheridan Flynn and Manasa NarayananOriginal Music: Phil ChannellMixed: Nigel Appleton Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With seemingly little interest from MI5 in Sergei’s concerns around what he believes to be an illegal offer of Russian funds into the Conservative party, he looks for other ways to raise the alarm. And after the success of the Conservative Friends of Russia launch party, the Russian embassy opens up a new charm offensive, inviting bloggers and social media specialists to ‘digital barbecues’ within their sumptuous surroundings. Insider, Steve Lacey, takes us on his journey down the rabbit hole of Russian propaganda.Episodes drop weekly!A Project Citizen & The Citizens productionTo find out more about the story and issues it raises visit www.the-citizens.comPresented by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter JukesWritten by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter Jukes with Ruth AbrahamsProducer and Sound Design: Ruth AbrahamsStudio Producer: Sean Byrne RobertsLocation Producers: Sheridan Flynn and Manasa NarayananOriginal Music: Phil ChannellMixed: Nigel Appleton Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Russian diplomat newly posted to the capital contacts a Conservative party activist, Sergei Cristo, and asks for an introduction. They meet at the oldest Conservative private member’s club in London, late 2011. The conversation raises suspicions for Sergei and he looks to share his concerns. But is anyone listening?Episodes drop weekly!A Project Citizen & The Citizens production.To find out more about the story and issues it raises visit www.the-citizens.comPresented by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter JukesWritten by: Carole Cadwalladr and Peter Jukes with Ruth AbrahamsProducer and Sound Design: Ruth AbrahamsStudio Producer: Sean Byrne RobertsLocation Producers: Sheridan Flynn and Manasa NarayananOriginal Music: Phil ChannellMixed: Nigel Appleton Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.