Parliament’s fake news inquiry shows it’s not Remainers who are in contempt of democracy

Two key witnesses in Parliament's ongoing fake news inquiry have shown real contempt for our democratic institutions this week.

There were bizarre scenes in Parliament yesterday as Alexander Nix (pictured) – the former boss of Cambridge Analytica – finally appeared before MPs as part of their inquiry into fake news.

Wednesday’s proceeding with the CA chief follows Parliament having to make a formal summons to Mr. Nix in order to make him appear before MPs, after he initially refused.

It comes after Guardian reports in March suggested the data analytics firm harvested personal information from more than 50 million Facebook profiles – including around a million in the UK – without permission, allegedly to help campaigns target voters in key elections. (CA deny any involvement in the Brexit campaign).

The story led to UK investigators raiding Cambridge Analytica’s London offices, with Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg also hauled before EU figures in a televised hearing.

At the time, Damian Collins MP, Chair of the DCMS Committee, said:

“Mr Nix has been given multiple opportunities to appear and clarify his evidence to the Committee, but now we expect him to appear on June 6. There are serious inconsistencies between Mr Nix’s original testimony of 27 February, and evidence received under the inquiry since.”

On Wednesday, Mr Nix did indeed (finally) appear before MPs. But it was not a pretty exchange.

Mr Nix began by repeatedly trying to override Damian Collins MP, chair of Parliament’s Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee. It went like this: 

[Nix attempts to read out a statement at the start]

Chair: “Mr Nix…it’s not the practice of the committee to have opening statements from witnesses”

Nix: “Ordinarily I would respect that, but these aren’t ordinary circumstances…I’d let to set out a statement…This is to do with framing my answers today.”

[Proceeds to read statement]

Chair: “Can you answer the question please…”

[Nix proceeds to read statement]

Chair, getting frustrated: “You’re just reading out the statement – can you answer the question I’ve put to you?”

Nix: “Mr Collins, I really don’t think this is appropriate. Other witnesses have given statements to this committee.”

Chair: “No, they’ve not…members put questions to witnesses who answer them. We don’t have opening statements…The way this works is we ask questions and witnesses answer them.”

Nix: “Could you repeat your question?”

The full hearing that followed was even stranger.

Mr Nix denied allegations by whistle-blower Christopher Wylie that Cambridge Analytica worked on the Brexit campaign. (In May the Electoral Commission ruled that CA did not receive money from the Leave camp, though a separate ICO investigation into the use of data analytics during the EU campaign is ongoing).

“I’m sitting here and being subjected to frankly ridiculous accusations based on the most tenuous connections that simply aren’t supported by evidence…You’re building a conspiracy,” Mr Nix told MPs. He also suggested he was the victim of a “concerted campaign” by the “global liberal media”.

The whole tone of the exchange had viewers shocked.

But it’s former Vote Leave director Dominic Cummings who is really showing his contempt for parliamentary democracy.

The Electoral Commission is currently investigating allegations that the Vote Leave campaign broke spending rules during the EU Referendum, after whistle-blower Shahmir Sanni – who worked for youth leave group ‘BeLeave’ – came forward to say that when £625,000 was given to them by Vote Leave, ‘it came with clear instructions as to how the money was to be used’.

This would constitute outright ‘coordination’ between the two groups – something prohibited under electoral spending rules, as a way to avoid spending limits.

Mr Cummings said: “I will not give evidence to this committee under any circumstances.”

Yet The Times‘ Sam Coates reports that Mr Cummings “has told friends he *will* turn up to watch the Commons debate on his failure to attend a Commons select committee – from the public gallery in the Commons.”

Best for Britain spokesperson Rupa Huq MP responded by saying: “Dominic Cummings is literally making a joke of our democracy.”

Select Committees are one of the key pillars of Parliamentary scrutiny. The ability of our elected MPs to summon witnesses – and the obligation for those witnesses to attend – is a cornerstone of democracy.

Not turning up is therefore a big deal: it represents a slap in the face of voters who empower their MPs to hold others to account.

The Committee chair is proposing a motion that will formally compel Dominic Cummings to appear before MPs. If the motion passes and he refuses, he could be charged with contempt of Parliament:

Brexiteers frequently cry about ‘enemies of the people’ and ‘saboteurs’. But this past few days we’ve seen true contempt of democracy – and it’s not from the Daily Mail’s usual targets…

Josiah Mortimer is Editor of Left Foot Forward. Follow him on Twitter.

See also: How everything could change if investigators find evidence of dirty tricks during the EU vote

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