Josh Simons #

Introduction #

Josh Simons is a British Labour Party politician who served as Member of Parliament for Makerfield and as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Digital Government in the Cabinet Office, a junior ministerial role involved in government plans for a new digital ID scheme. Before entering Parliament, he directed Labour Together, the think tank widely credited with helping Sir Keir Starmer win the Labour leadership. On 28 February 2026, days after the prime minister asked his ethics adviser to investigate claims connected to research his former think tank had commissioned, Simons resigned as a minister — even though the ethics adviser, Sir Laurie Magnus, formally found that he had not breached the ministerial code.

Background Information #

Labour Together, previously run by Starmer’s former chief of staff Morgan McSweeney, is seen as close to the current government and was widely credited with helping Starmer get elected as Labour leader. Ahead of the 2024 election, the Sunday Times published a story about undeclared donations at the think tank — the story at the centre of what followed.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation #

The claims against Simons concerned research commissioned while he ran Labour Together. According to the BBC, Labour Together paid the US public affairs firm APCO Worldwide at least £30,000 to “investigate the sourcing, funding and origins” of the Sunday Times story; a summary of other reporting published by Global Banking & Finance Review put the spending at around £36,000. The APCO report — whose contents sources confirmed to the BBC, which did not see it in full — included information about Sunday Times journalist Gabriel Pogrund’s Jewish beliefs and claims about his ideological position. It also claimed his previous reporting, including on the Royal Family, “could be seen as destabilising to the UK and also in the interests of Russia’s strategic foreign policy objectives”. A contract addressed to Simons, seen by the BBC, also agreed to investigate journalist Paul Holden and the American reporter Matt Taibbi.

What is documented. Ethics adviser Sir Laurie Magnus formally found no breach of the ministerial code. His review found Simons hired APCO because he believed Labour Together had been the victim of an illegal hack, had not intended the firm to scrutinise journalists, and acted to have references to a British newspaper journalist removed from the initial report, and concluded there was no basis to advise the prime minister that Simons had breached the code. The conduct allegations — that Labour Together commissioned APCO research probing journalists’ backgrounds — remain allegations as reported. What is documented is the outcome: Simons resigned anyway, writing that his remaining in office had “now become a distraction from this government’s important work”.

After the claims were reported, Starmer asked Magnus to investigate. Magnus wrote that Simons had accepted the terms he agreed with APCO were “wider than he had understood” and that he had acted “too hastily in confirming their appointment”, but had acted “in good faith”.

Public Reaction and Consequences #

In his resignation letter to Starmer, published on the government’s website, Simons wrote: “It is clear that my remaining in office has now become a distraction from this government’s important work”, adding: “For that reason, and with sadness and regret, I offer my resignation.” He said he “never sought to smear” the Guardian and Sunday Times journalists investigated by APCO Worldwide, and paid tribute to their work.

Starmer accepted the resignation “with sadness”, telling Simons: “I want to express my thanks for the commitment, focus, and energy you have brought to ministerial office”.

Holden said: “Josh Simons doesn’t deserve to be an MP, let alone a cabinet minister”, adding that he would “now work to make sure parliamentary authorities hold him to account if our weak and supine prime minister will not”, and claiming Simons’ actions had threatened his livelihood and reputation and caused him “significant distress”. More than 20 Labour MPs had called for a “fully independent investigation” into Simons and the report. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accused Starmer of using the strikes in the Middle East to try and “sneak out yet another ministerial resignation”, saying: “Josh Simons was in charge of a group that deliberately smeared journalists, even using a journalist’s Jewish faith to call him into question. Labour hasn’t changed”, and called on the prime minister to return what she described as tainted money donated by Labour Together. Alison Phillips, Labour Together’s chief executive since 2025, called the “scope of the work” carried out by APCO “indefensible” and said the organisation would “learn the necessary lessons of the past” under new leadership. Reuters noted that Labour Together and APCO did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Current Status #

The resignation ended Simons’ ministerial role rather than his parliamentary seat. Reuters reported that his exit added to a growing number of official departures in Starmer’s less than two years in office. Allies of Simons told the BBC that he regretted what had happened, believed APCO had to take responsibility for its actions and so far had not, and had put his party first by resigning.

Impact on Their Career/Life #

The resignation removed Simons from government at 32, ending his role in the Cabinet Office’s digital ID plans despite the formal finding of no ministerial code breach — a point Reuters emphasised in reporting that the minister quit “even though a review found he had not breached the ministerial code”. Holden said he would work to ensure parliamentary authorities held Simons to account, while Phillips said Labour Together, under new leadership, would learn from the episode.