Labor MP Liam Byrne faces increasing pressure to withdraw allegations linking a city financier to the Kremlin
- Byrne claimed that Fraser Perring was “a not infrequent visitor to Moscow.”
- He also accused Perring of being involved in a short-selling attack on Babcock
- Perring has challenged Byrne to repeat his statements outside the Commons
Under pressure: Labor MP Liam Byrne
A Labor MP is under increasing pressure to withdraw allegations linking a city financier to the Kremlin.
Liam Byrne, former Treasury chief secretary, claimed that Fraser Perring, head of short-selling company Viceroy Research, was “a not infrequent visitor to Moscow.”
He also accused him of working “hand in glove” with another company, Boatman Capital, to launch a short-selling attack on British defense group Babcock.
Last month he added: “We must ensure that short-selling groups are not another weapon in Putin’s arsenal. Where there are ties between short-selling strike groups and the Kremlin, we need to know.” Byrne’s comments are protected by parliamentary privilege, which means he cannot be charged.
But the statements sparked a fierce row with Perring, who has denied the allegations and has challenged Byrne to repeat his statements outside the House of Commons, and thus without legal protection. The matter has since escalated with Perring local MP Sir Edward Leigh wading into the feud.
In an email seen by the Mail, Sir Edward’s office said he had written to Byrne ‘asking him to withdraw his comments and clarify his statement in the House’. It added that the Speaker’s office had been informed of the situation in the hope that an “amicable solution” could be found.
Byrne has so far failed to provide any evidence for his claims that Perring has ties to Russia. The short-seller also hit back by claiming the MP was paid to ask questions to discredit him. Byrne has labeled these allegations as “patently false.” Perring has denied any Russian connection, saying he has never been to Moscow and has no ties to the Kremlin. He has also called on Byrne to officially withdraw his comments on the parliamentary report.
An MP since 2004, Byrne was Chief Secretary of the Treasury under Gordon Brown before Labor was voted out in the 2010 general election. He got a lot of attention when he left a note saying there was “no more money.”
Aside from allegations that Perring was involved in a brief attack on Babcock, Byrne also said Viceroy was targeting homeless landlord Home REIT, who is under investigation by the National Crime Agency amid bribery allegations.
Perring has also denied collaborating with Boatman Capital to attack Babcock, stating that Home REIT was not targeted by Viceroy.