Michael Gove defends Boris Johnson meeting oligarch Evgeny Lebedev who MI6 had concerns about

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Michael Gove said he was never told that he or Boris Johnson should not meet Evening Standard owner Evgeny Lebedev after reports that MI6 has had concerns about the Russian oligarch since 2013.

Fresh questions have been raised about Boris Johnson’s decision to nominate Lord Lebedev, whose father was a KGB agent in London, for a peerage after The Sunday Times revealed that the head of MI6 in 2013, Sir John Sawers, refused to meet him.

The prime minister has denied there were security concerns around his long relationship with Lord Lebedev.

Donation declarations show Mr Johnson visited the Russian’s Italian villa, and accepted flights and chauffeur-driven car rides with him while he was mayor of London in 2013 and 2014.

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Mr Gove defended Mr Lebedev, and suggested to Sky News that questioning his peerage nomination could play into Vladimir Putin’s hands during the Ukraine invasion.

He told the Sophy Ridge on Sunday programme: “I think one of the things that Vladimir Putin would like us to do is to have an approach in the UK that said that everyone of Russian ancestry was somehow persona non grata.”

Mr Gove said the security services had never told him he should not meet Lord Lebedev, who was made a peer in November 2020. Mr Johnson was reportedly warned against nominating him by MI6.

“I’ve met Lord Lebedev, as the prime minister has,” he said.

“At no point did anyone ever say to me that it would be inappropriate to meet him and talk to him.”

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