Donor: I didn’t fund PM’s free trip Villa’s owner: Someone paid the bill
Mail finds Mustique home is owned by U.S. financier... but mystery deepens as she says she WAS paid for Boris stay
THE mystery over who funded Boris Johnson’s free New Year Caribbean holiday deepened last night as the luxury villa’s owner told the Daily Mail she had ‘got paid’ for it.
Sarah Richardson, who owns the magnificent mansion where the Prime Minister stayed on Mustique, confirmed that she and her husband Craig had rented it out.
However, she said she had ‘no idea’ who had actually covered the cost of the rental as it had been handled by The Mustique Company, the island’s management company.
The revelation comes after David Ross – the British businessman whom Mr Johnson declared had provided the £15,000 ‘benefit in kind’ – denied he had been the one to pay.
The Prime Minister triggered the mystery by naming Mr Ross as the ‘donor’ of the holiday in the Commons register of interests on Wednesday.
But although the former Carphone Warehouse tycoon accepted that he arranged the trip, his spokesman insisted that he did not ‘pay any monies whatsoever’. It means that the identity of the person who covered the cost of the trip remains a mystery,
Mr Johnson is facing the prospect of a Commons sleaze inquiry over his declaration about the trip, with Labour yesterday formally writing to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, Kathryn Stone, demanding an investigation into who paid.
Two former standards chiefs have also joined the calls for an inquiry, warning that they believed Mr Johnson had not followed the rules properly. Yesterday, the Mail tracked down the wealthy American owners of the stunning villa where Mr Johnson stayed with his girlfriend Carrie Symonds over the New Year period.
The Richardsons, who live in Rhode Island in the US, sometimes stay in their Caribbean home, named Indigo, and at other times it is rented out via The Mustique Company.
Mr Johnson and Miss Symonds arrived at the property on Boxing Day last year and stayed for ten days at the hideaway, which boasts fourposter beds, open air terraces and an infinity pool.
Nestled on a Mustique hillside, Indigo commands sweeping views over wild sea grass to the island’s pristine beaches, making it the perfect hideaway. It comes with its own full-time housekeeper, chef and gardener.
Last night, Mrs Richardson told the Mail that she had never heard of Mr Ross, but she said they had definitely been paid for the rental. Mrs Richardson said: ‘We got paid for the stay – we get paid for anybody who rents our house. But we have no idea who paid for the house, whether he [Mr Johnson] did, or whoever this Mr Ross is – I don’t know who he is – paid.
‘All I know is that we got a statement saying we received a certain amount of income as a result of our house being rented. We don’t get involved in who rents our house. That is the Mustique Company that handles that.’
Asked if the £15,000 ($19,000) sum declared by Mr Johnson tallied with the amount she had received, she said: ‘I’m not going to answer that.
That’s private information for sure. I can’t answer that.’
On Wednesday, Mr Ross’s spokesman told the Mail he did not own the villa and had not paid for its use. But under apparent pressure from Downing Street, Mr Ross yesterday released a further statement stating that he had ‘facilitated’ the accommodation for Mr Johnson and his girlfriend.
The Tory donor claimed that because he had arranged the trip for the Prime Minister, Mr Johnson’s declaration to the
House of Commons had been ‘correct’. Number 10 insisted the details of the getaway were properly declared.
Mrs Richardson, 71, comes from a family of Wall Street investment bankers and great American philanthropists.
She is a director of the Prospect Hill Foundation, a philanthropic organisation based on Rhode Island. It is linked to Prospect Hill Capital Advisors, a New York wealth management firm for ultra high net worth individuals. She is
also listed as a vice president of Tangent Films Ltd, a movie picture production company founded by her husband Craig, 72.
For their post- Christmas break, Mr Johnson and Miss Symonds flew British Airways to St Lucia and then used a small propeller plane for the hop to Mustique. According to the villa’s advertised price of $27,000 per week at that time of year, a ten- day stay would normally have cost $38,500 (£29,500).
The villa is priced at varying rates depending on the time of year. But in the two weeks leading up to January 4 it was advertised at the premium rate. Yesterday, the island’s management company refused to comment on the actual price paid, whether there was any discount or any details of the arrangement involving the couple’s stay at Indigo.
Mr Johnson and his girlfriend spent most of their time in seclusion at their bolthole, eschewing the chance to join in the wild New Year’s beach party that was attended by Rolling Stones frontman Sir Mick Jagger, Bond star Daniel Craig and model Kate Moss.
But on New Year’s Day, the Prime Minister and Miss Symonds dropped in to the Caribbean’s most famous hostelry, Basil’s Bar.
THE Prime Minister goes on a New Year holiday to the Caribbean luxury bolthole of Mustique and stays in a house courtesy of... well who exactly?
Boris Johnson records in the Commons register of interests that he received a benefit to the tune of £ 15,000 from Carphone Warehouse co-founder David Ross. Mr Ross firstly denies the gift was his because he does not own the property and did not pay to rent it on Mr Johnson’s behalf – merely arranging the stay.
He then performs the oddest of U-turns, admitting that he ‘ facilitated the accommodation’ and that – hey presto – he should be described as the benefactor.
Yet, the American owners of the house say they were paid by someone for the rental. So, who paid it?
Mr Johnson needs to stop prevaricating and come clean about the truth of this increasingly murky affair. Prime ministers must not only observe the rules, but be seen to do so. If Mr Johnson knows and isn’t telling, that’s bad. If he has no idea who paid, that’s bizarre.