A recent libel case involving South Gloucestershire based multi-millionaire Arron Banks and Somerset born journalist Carole Cadwalladr has brought to light offerings of "sweetheart deals" among several meetings with Russian officials. Mr Banks, a businessman with links to Thornbury, had challenged Ms Cadwalladr off the back of a TED Talk she delivered back in 2019, where she'd stated "I’m not even going to get into the lies that Arron Banks told about his covert relationship with the Russian government".
Not only was this statement claimed to be libellous, but so too - Mr Banks claimed - was Ms Cadwalladr's response on Twitter. She refuted this on the grounds of public interest, stating she had "reasonable grounds to believe that her intended meaning [in her TED Talk] was true".
Last week Hon Mrs Justice Steyn found that whilst Mr Banks' evidence of his reputation being harmed by Ms Cadwalladr's statement 'came across as truthful', so too was Ms Cadwallladr's public interest defence in raising questions of the business tycoon's links with Russia:
