“In a new book, Britain’s former deputy foreign minister Alan Duncan accuses the Israel lobby of “disgusting interference in our public life.””
“Speaking to the Mail+ website this week Duncan said that lobby group Conservative Friends of Israel “interfere at a high level in British politics in the interest of Israel, on the back of donor power within the UK.””
“Duncan writes that Conservative Friends of Israel successfully vetoed his appointment as Middle East minister in 2016. Then Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson told him that Conservative Friends of Israel were “going ballistic” at the prospect, Duncan writes.”
“Duncan was a member of Parliament for 27 years before stepping down ahead of the 2019 general election.”
“In January 2017 an undercover series filmed by Al Jazeera revealed that Duncan had been on a hit list of British MPs that an Israeli embassy agent wanted to “take down.””
“Israeli embassy spy Shai Masot and civil servant Maria Strizzolo were caught on undercover camera conspiring to engineer “a little scandal” for Duncan, who was the first openly gay Conservative MP.”
“Later in 2017, then international development minister Priti Patel […] held 12 undisclosed meetings with Israeli ministers and business leaders.”
“Her meetings included Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself. Patel had not declared the meetings to British officials or had them minuted in the normal fashion.”
“According to UK government rules, ministerial meetings discussing official business should be attended and recorded by civil servants – whose role is to serve the government in a nonpartisan fashion.”
“Patel’s meetings were arranged by Stuart Polak, a leading Conservative Friends of Israel lobbyist.”
“In his book Duncan describes Polak as “the principal pro-Israel donor lobbyist in the UK.””
Read more: “High-level” Israel lobby interference in British politics, says ex-minister
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