Kwasi Kwarteng’s secret meetings with Saudi oil firms revealed
The chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, held undisclosed meetings with senior executives of Saudi Arabian firms when he was the business secretary, documents acquired by the Guardian show.
The meetings occurred in January, when Kwarteng visited the kingdom for a two-day trip under his previous ministerial role.
Documents released using the Freedom of Information Act (FoI) show Kwarteng held undisclosed meetings with the chief executive of Saudi Aramco, the world’s biggest oil producer; the chief executive of Sabic, the world’s fourth largest petrochemical company; and the chair of Alfanar Group, an industrial conglomerate.
However, transparency disclosures from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy did not contain any reference to meetings during the period Kwarteng was in Saudi Arabia when originally published.
While meetings with foreign government figures are not required to be declared, encounters with business executives should be. A government spokesperson said there had been an “administrative oversight”.
Kwarteng was flown around the kingdom by Saudi Aramco, which operates a number of helicopters, jets and airports. The flights provided the opportunity for the oil company to lobby the minister then responsible for the UK’s energy policy, the documents suggest.
Minutes of meetings held by Kwarteng written by an official that accompanied him include a section titled “Aramco flight talk”, noting Kwarteng discussed the “history and opportunities for the company”.
Other points of discussion on the flight were redacted by the business department on the grounds of potential prejudice of UK-Saudi relations, possible harm to the formulation of UK government policy, and the need to protect commercial interests.
Kwar
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