Good morning. Last night, the Guardian published the first part of a major investigation into the ethically questionable practices that helped Uber to become a global ride-hailing empire. A new tranche of stories went live a few minutes ago.
The Uber files – an unprecedented leak of more than 124,000 documents – reveal the remarkable inside story of how the company secretly lobbied governments, misled police forces, disregarded local laws, and exploited violence against drivers to become one of the defining tech giants of the 21st century.
Any one of these stories on its own would be front-page news; taken together, they form an extraordinary portrait of a Silicon Valley behemoth’s ruthless expansion, and the access to senior politicians that facilitated it. Today’s newsletter will take you through all of it. That’s right after the headlines.
Five big stories
Conservatives | Tory leadership hopefuls are facing a dramatically accelerated contest to find Boris Johnson’s successor, with candidates likely to be whittled down to a final two in about a week. There are now 11 candidates, with Priti Patel expected to reach a decision on Monday. On Sunday, Jeremy Hunt promised to make Esther McVey his deputy prime minister in an attempt to broaden his appeal in the north of England.
Donald Trump | Steve Bannon, the controversial onetime White House strategist, has opened discussions with the January 6 select committee about testifying to the inquiry into the Capitol attack. The panel has sought Bannon’s testimony for months.
Sri Lanka | Sri Lanka’s main opposition parties moved to form an all-party unity government a day after the president and the prime minister said they would resign after protesters attacked their homes over the country’s worsening economic crisis.
Japan | Japan’s ruling party has won a comfortable victory in elections overshadowed by the assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe. The Liberal Democratic party (LDP), which Abe led until 2020, secured more than half the 125 seats being contested in the 248-seat upper house.
Weather | Britons will face sweltering conditions this week with a heatwave that could bring highs of up to 33C, and forecasters are warning that a new UK record temperature could be set.
In depth: The untold story of how Uber conquered the world
The process that led to the publication of this global investigation began when the Guardian was leaked many thousands of documents – among them emails, WhatsApps, and iMessages – between senior executives at Uber, including founder and then-chief executive Travis Kalanick (above). The Guardian shared this data with media organisations around the world via the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) – bringing in 40 outlets including Le Monde, the Washington Post, and the BBC.
The leak covers the years from 2013 to 2017, a period of crucial importance to the company’s success as Kalanick sought to drive its expansion into new markets all over the world – often meeting with fierce opposition from established taxi firms and politicians who were reluctant to see the gig economy model take hold.
Uber has said that it “will not make excuses for past behaviour” during the period of the leak but said that it has since been transformed under new leadership. A spokesperson for Travis Kalanick, who stood down as chief executive in 2017, said that Uber’s expansion initiatives “were led by over a hundred leaders in dozens of countries around the world and at all times under the direct oversight and with the full approval of Uber’s robust legal, policy, and compliance groups”. You can see Uber’s full response here and Kalanick’s here.
More stories will be published in the days ahead. Here are some of the most remarkable findings of the investigation so far, with links to everything you need to go deeper.
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Uber’s CEO was ready to exploit protests: ‘Violence guarantees success’
In 2016, more than 2,100 furious taxi drivers staged a massive anti-Uber protest in Paris and across France. In a febrile atmosphere, an Uber manager reported dozens of incidents including assaults on its drivers. In messages seen by the Guardian, Kalanick suggests “civil disobedience” involving 15,000 drivers as a response.
After a senior executive said he was “worried about taxi violence” against Uber drivers, Kalanick said that he thought such incidents would help Uber to persuade the French government to reduce barriers to its business in France. “If we have 50,000 riders they won’t and can’t do anything,” he wrote. “I think it’s worth it. Violence guarantee[s] success.”
Travis Kalanick’s spokesperson questioned the authenticity of some documents and said he “never suggested that Uber should take advantage of violence at the expense of driver safety”. Uber’s spokesperson acknowledged past mistakes, but said no one, including Kalanick, wanted violence.
• For more on this story, and how Uber planned out a counter-demonstration ostensibly run by an independent drivers’ association, click here.
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The ‘kill switch’ used to stop police finding sensitive data
As the expansion of Uber’s unlicensed taxi service came under sharp legal scrutiny around the world, executives developed a sophisticated playbook to thwart police and regulators looking for sensitive information during raids on its offices. On at least a dozen occasions, the Uber files reveal, senior leaders ordered the use of a “kill switch” to block investigators’ access to its main IT systems, in some cases even after raids had begun.
Emails show Travis Kalanick instructing IT staff to use the system. During a raid in Amsterdam Kalanick wrote: “Please hit the kill switch ASAP … Access must be shut down.”
Uber said its software “should never have been used to thwart legitimate regulatory action”. A spokesperson for Kalanick said the kill switch was never used to obstruct justice.
• For more on this story, and how Uber managers were urged to “appear confused” when asked for access by police, click here.
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Emmanuel Macron secretly helped Uber’s lobbying drive in France
When Emmanuel Macron was France’s economy minister, the leak reveals, he was identified by Uber as a key ally. And of four meetings with Kalanick recorded by the leak, three appear not to have been recorded in Macron’s public diary.
At one point, after authorities in Marseille appeared to ban the UberX service, the company’s chief lobbyist in Europe Mark MacGann asked Macron if he could “ask your cabinet to help us understand what is going on”. Macron replied: “I will look at this personally. Have all the facts sent to me and we will make a decision by this evening. At this point, let’s stay calm.”
Macron did not respond to detailed questions, but a statement on his behalf said his job “naturally led him to meet and interact with many companies engaged in the sharp shift which came out during those years in the service sector”.
• For more on this story, and how Uber viewed Macron as a “spectacular” ally, click here.
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Uber held secret meetings with at least six Conservative ministers
When Uber was locked in negotiations to secure access to the UK between 2014 and 2016, at least six Conservative ministers did not declare secret meetings at which company executives lobbied them.
In one instance in 2014, George Osborne – then the chancellor – was invited to a “small dinner” in California by Rachel Whetstone, the wife of David Cameron’s one-time policy guru Steve Hilton. Whetstone was then head of communications and public policy at Google – a major Uber investor – and later moved to Uber itself. Travis Kalanick was among the guests; one executive told Kalanick it would be “a good use of your time” because it would be a “much more private affair, no hanger-on officials or staffers” compared to a meeting in London.
The meetings did not have to be declared because of a loophole which allows informal lobbying to be left out of governmental disclosures. Osborne said that “all business meetings were properly declared” and were in line with official policy. Whetstone’s lawyers said that she “never sought to exploit or take improper advantage of personal relationships”.
• For more on this story, and meetings involving Matt Hancock, Michael Gove, Priti Patel, Sajid Javid and Ed Vaizey, click here. And for the story of Uber’s battle to defeat black taxis in London – and a strategy to get George Osborne and David Cameron to win then-mayor Boris Johnson’s support – click here.
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Uber used former top Barack Obama staffers to gain access
As Uber tried to smooth its route into new markets around the world, it had the help of two key figures in the Obama administration: David Plouffe and Jim Messina. Plouffe joined Uber in 2014, while Messina was contracted as a consultant.
The leaks reveal that Uber sought help from US ambassadors to smooth over difficulties in new markets. The details they reveal appear to sit uncomfortably with the Obama administration’s pledge to end the use of cozy government relationships to enhance companies’ prospects: in Paris, for example, Messina messaged an executive who was about to meet with ambassador Jane Hartley and said: “Tell her I love her” and “We did give her FRANCE.”
Plouffe said that none of the officials he spoke to for Uber were responsive because of his previous job. Messina said his role was to help Uber “understand the political landscape” in Europe and that he had “never engaged in lobbying”.
• For more on this story, and how the US ambassador to the UK Matthew Barzun organised an event for Plouffe attended by a minister, influential MPs, government officials, and journalists, click here.
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More from the Uber files
Today in Focus has a three-part miniseries on the story – starting with senior tech reporter Johana Bhuiyan and head of investigations Paul Lewis talking to Michael Safi about how Uber took over the world, and what the leaks tell us.
Rafael Behr writes that the Uber files are a “a snapshot of a particular moment – the peak of political credulity and negligence around the growing power of tech companies” – but also tell a “dismally familiar” story of “politics getting captured by corporate lobbyists”.
This story details files which appear to show a former EU digital chief secretly helping Uber to lobby the Dutch prime minister – during a “cooling off” period after leaving the commission when she was barred from that kind of work. It also reveals how keen Uber was to keep her role “highly confidential”, saying that her name “should never figure on a document”.
This piece tells the story of how Fraser Robinson, a star executive who was based in London, left Uber after he was told that he would “have to move to AMS [Amsterdam]” because his presence in the UK could strengthen the argument that Uber should pay tax there.
This timeline provides a condensed history of Uber’s remarkable rise to global dominance, and the controversies it has generated along the way.
What else we’ve been reading
John Harris writes that the key lesson of Boris Johnson’s tenure is that it’s not just the economy that’s in crisis – but British democracy itself. “This country is in an awful, increasingly frightening mess,” he writes, “because its politics and system of power remain stuck in the past.” Archie
As dedicated followers of summer fashion are no doubt aware, the only way to wear your bikini this summer is, er, by turning it upside down. Ex-Love Islander Antigoni filled Guardian Fashion in on a trend that’s silly but sustainable. Hannah J Davies, deputy editor, newsletters
It was meant to be the holiday of a lifetime – instead, passengers on the MS Zaandam found themselves on a coronavirus cruise. Jonathan Franklin and Michael Smith tell the story of their confinement. Archie
While Novak Djokovic won at Wimbledon yesterday (see below), Nick Kyrgios was the most compelling story. Barney Ronay summarises what makes it so hard to stop watching him despite yourself: “Being Nick Kyrgios must be deeply draining. Every time you go on court, Nick Kyrgios is there.” Archie
To those inside of it, a housing chain can seem deeply mysterious: who are the people a step away whose choices can transform your future? Tom Lamont’s piece is a fascinating look at every link in a single example. Archie
Sport
Tennis | Novak Djokovic beat Nick Kyrgios 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (3) to take his 21st grand slam and seventh Wimbledon men’s title. On Saturday, Elena Rybakina beat Ons Jabeur 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 to win the women’s title.
Football | Grace Geyoro’s hat-trick led France’s 5-1 rout for a perfect Women’s Euros start against Italy.
F1 | Charles Leclerc saw off Max Verstappen to win the Austrian Grand Prix for Ferrari and cut Verstappen’s lead to 38 points. Mercedes’s Lewis Hamilton and George Russell finished third and fourth.
The front pages
The front page of the Guardian print edition today is dominated by our Uber files coverage – “Leak reveals secret lobbying operation to conquer the world” – but there is space also for the race to replace Boris Johnson: “Tory rivals scramble for supporters”. The other titles report on the various stalls set out, attacks launched and defences mounted. “Truss vows: I would cut taxes from day one” – that’s the Telegraph. “Zahawi: I’m being smeared over tax” says the Express. “Rishi caught in Cummings ‘toxic smears’ storm” says the Mail amid claims the blogger is helping Sunak besmirch others. The i frames the contest as “Tory race to be next PM is ‘Sunak versus one of the rest’” while the Times has “Rivals on the Tory right do battle to beat Sunak”. The FT looks at how backbenchers will set the rules of the game: “Tories to thin leadership field as rancour rises between rival camps”. The Metro offers a weather tie-in: “Scorcher” as “race to be our next premier hots up … Oh, and there’s a heatwave too”. The Mirror has a report on the health service: “Ambulances in worst ever crisis” it says, as “Patients wait up to 27 hours at A&E” and the NHS “seizes up”.
Today in Focus
The Uber files: the unicorn (part one)
The first in a three-part series on the leak of internal documents from inside Uber – revealing evidence that the company broke laws, duped police, exploited violence against drivers and secretly lobbied prime ministers and presidents
Cartoon of the day | Nicola Jennings
The Upside
A bit of good news to remind you that the world’s not all bad
Once dubbed the world’s rarest bird, the Spix’s Macaw has made a comeback in its homeland of Brazil. The parrot, which was thought to have disappeared from the wild in 2016, has been rescued thanks to an international project – with a flock now flying free. Named after German biologist Johann Baptist Ritter von Spix, who first collected a specimen in 1819, the parrot rose to prominence as the lead in animated film Rio, which drew attention to its plight – threatened both by farming and then the unscrupulous efforts of private collectors. But now the birds have a second chance: “It’s going as well as it possibly could,” said biologist Tom White, of the US Fish and Wildlife Service and a technical adviser to the rescue project.
Sign up here for a weekly roundup of The Upside, sent to you every Sunday
Bored at work?
And finally, the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day – with plenty more on the Guardian’s Puzzles app for iOS and Android. Until tomorrow.
