Growing fears over shortage of skilled staff

CONTROVERSIAL LEAVE campaigner Arron Banks has insisted there is “no Russian money and no interference” after a criminal probe was launched into the source of £8m worth of campaign funding for the Brexit referendum.

In a typically combative performance, the businessman and co-founder of the Leave.EU campaign told the BBC’s

yesterday that all the cash came from a UK-registered company, and repeated claims that he was being targeted by Remainsupporting politicians.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) probe was launched into “suspected criminal offences” after the elections watchdog said it had reasonable grounds to suspect that Mr Banks was not the true source of the cash.

It also said that the loans involved a company – Rock Holdings – based on the Isle of Man, which was not permitted under finance rules.

However, Mr Banks told Mr Marr that it came from a UKbased insurance business, adding: “There was no Russian money and no interference of any type. I want to be absolutely clear about that.

“The money came from Rock Services which was a UK limited company, it was generated out of insurance business written in the UK.

“Contrary to some of the press reports in the

and other Remain-leaning publications, we insure nearly half a million customers a year – the size of Manchester. We turn over £250m of premiums, it’s a sizeable business.”

The Electoral Commission’s review of referendum finances focused on £2m reported to have been loaned to Better for the Country by Mr Banks and his insurance companies and a £6m donation which he made alone.

Mr Banks lashed out again at the Electoral Commission, accusing it of being full of his political opponents, as well as elements of the media who opposed Brexit.

He said Rock Services had “all sorts of revenues”, but did not detail them.

“I know it’s complex for journalists to understand but we know what this is about – it’s about undermining Article 50 and the Brexit result,” he added. “It’s a group of vicious MPs who have grouped together with the

and the Mr Banks also attacked Damian Collins, chairman of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, which is conducting its own probe into the referendum campaign.

Asked why he had written to Mr Collins’ constituents in Folkestone and Hythe, calling him a “snake in the grass”, Mr Banks replied: “Well, he is.”

The commission also referred Leave.EU, its chief executive, Elizabeth Bilney, and the organisation that ran it, Better for the Country, to the NCA last week after carrying out a review.

Bob Posner, the commission’s director of political finance, said: “We have reasonable grounds to suspect money given to Better for the Country came from impermissible sources and that Mr Banks and Ms Bilney, the responsible person for Leave.EU, knowingly concealed the true circumstances under which this money was provided.

“This is significant because at least £2.9m of this money was used to fund referendum spending and donations during the regulated period of the EU referendum.”

Ms Bilney wrongdoing.

The BBC was last week accused of operating against the public interest after inviting Mr Banks onto the in light of the investigation by the NCA.

Remain campaigner and Labour peer Andrew Adonis wrote to the BBC’s Director-General Tony Hall and accused the corporation of making a serious “editorial misjudgment”. also denies any MOST BUSINESSES fear there will be a lack of suitably-skilled workers to fill growing numbers of vacancies in the next few years, according to a new study.

Research by the CBI suggests four out of five firms expect to have an increased number of higher-skilled roles in the coming years and most will maintain or raise investment in training.

But two-thirds of the 28,000 businesses covered in the report fear there will still be a lack of sufficiently-skilled people to fill their vacancies.

John Cope, of the CBI, said: “The survey shows the scale of the challenge to address skills gaps, with two-thirds of businesses deeply worried that there aren’t enough sufficiently skilled people to fill vacancies.

“The vast majority of firms do expect to maintain or even increase their investment in staff training, as well as increase the number of higher-skilled roles over the coming years.”