Questions remain over Reform MS's expenses despite being cleared by standards watchdog

Emily Price 

Reform MS Laura Anne Jones has been exonerated by the Senedd’s standards watchdog - but questions remain about the findings of the investigation.

The Standards Commissioner's report, obtained by Nation.Cymru, reveals that the former Welsh Conservative politician has been cleared over allegations that she fabricated her fuel expenses claims.

Douglas Bain stated that none of the witnesses he questioned supported the whistleblower's version of events.

However, information provided to Nation.Cymru last year appeared to contradict the Commissioner's conclusion.

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Mileage

A Welsh Conservative associate - who is not the complainant - told us that they were aware that Jones was instructing her staff to submit false expenses claims.

However, the source told us they had signed a Non Disclosure Agreement (NDA) which blocked them from speaking out on the matter.

A Welsh Conservative spokesperson told us that if there were any legal agreement in place it would have been up to Jones to oversee and not the Tory group office.

We asked Laura Anne Jones if she had ever asked any of her employees to sign a Non Disclosure Agreement or similar legal document that would block them from speaking out about her expenses claims or anything else that went on in her office.

We received a response that did not deny that an NDA had been used.

In a statement Jones said: "It’s disappointing that, following several other leaks over the past 18 months, the investigation process once again hasn’t been respected and adhered to.

"Any allegations of misconduct should be reported via the clear routes available and investigated thoroughly. I am confident that any evidence, if it has been submitted to the Standards Commissioner, has been rigorously investigated by the Commissioner."

Jones defected to Reform UK over the summer and is rumoured to be the party's first choice for Welsh leader - meaning she could potentially become the First Minister of Wales.

She has been under investigation for several months over her milage claims and discriminatory behaviour in her office.

South Wales Police were called in to investigate the allegations last year - but later concluded that "no evidence of fraudulent activity" was found.

WhatsApp messages revealed she had told an employee, "When doing petrol thing - always make more than I did - add in stuff please ok."

When asked if expenses claims should be made for days when Jones was off sick, the South Wales East MS responded: "If you could always do more than it says, that’d be fab, thanks. "

The whistleblower who raised the alarm thought the messages were proof that Jones had broken the Senedd's rules.

But the standards watchdog has ruled that the complainant had merely misinterpreted the messages.

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Concerns

Jones testified she, "did not keep an accurate record of all journeys she made" and that she had "instructed the complainant to use all available records to ensure that she included in the claim all journeys for which a claim could properly be made".

The watchdog said he was satisfied that Jones' version of events was "more likely than not to be the correct one".

The complainant also raised concerns with the Commissioner about Jones' "toxic" office culture and offensive messages exchanged in the staff group chat.

Eight witnesses were sent a written questionnaire to complete - whilst the complainant and Jones were interviewed under oath.

The Standards Commissioner reported how the whistleblower had launched her complaint after being dismissed by Jones on February 29 2025 for "unsatisfactory performance".

Bain stated it was his opinion that the whistleblower's complaint against Jones was born out of a need for "revenge" for being dismissed.

The complainant disputed this, saying that on February 29 they were not dismissed, they were signed off sick from work for a week with stress and anxiety and prescribed anti-depressants.

It is understood that the complainant had been having suicidal thoughts following stress at work.

A message seen by Nation.Cymru sent on March 1 appears to show Jones offer reassurance to her employee telling them, "don’t worry about your future prospects, all will be fine."

However, the standards watchdog said both Jones and her chief aide Ed Sumner had testified that the complainant's work was unsatisfactory.

The whistleblower disputed this having received three promotions during their time working for Jones.

They argued that they were only dismissed on March 4 after they had raised a bullying complaint against Sumner.

Sumner now works as Reform UK's director of communications. In his written answers to the Commissioner, he claimed Jones' expenses were not part of his remit.

This was despite a text message from Jones to the complainant telling them to "ask others/Ed" how to "blag" a mileage claim for conference.

Bullying

Two female witnesses told the Commissioner they felt Sumner had bullied the complainant.

Another male witness said the complainant had confided in them about "unwanted behaviour" from the former chief advisor.

This included unwanted language about his sexual experiences and an occasion when the former chief aide snatched a PC mouse out of the complainants hand.

The witness said Sumner regularly made "derogatory and unpleasant comments" about "various individuals or groups".

They added: "The working environment within Laura Anne Jones' office was notably toxic and distressing".

However, the Standards Commissioner criticised the complainant for not raising concerns about the office culture and expenses claims whilst they were working for Jones.

He disregarded the argument that the former Tory staffer feared the potential repercussions that can come with whistleblowing - such as financial hardship, mental health issues and isolation.

'Demeanour'

Bain also criticised the complainant - who is understood to be on the autistic spectrum - for their manner whilst being questioned.

His report stated: "Even allowing for her natural nervousness and the passage of time since the events being considered, I was not impressed by their demeanour when interviewed."

Bain noted that the complainant obtained legal advice following the termination of their employment - but that they did not pursue any legal action against Jones.

Nation.Cymru was able to obtain several audio recordings of telephone conversations that took place between the complainant and Gavin Chambers - Jones' long term friend who provided evidence to Bain's probe.

Chambers was employed by Jones for several years to publish Tory propaganda in community Facebook groups and challenge members of the public who criticised her.

During the recorded calls, Chambers appeared to act as a mediator, negotiating three months pay and a good reference in return for the complainant agreeing not to pursue any legal action against Jones.

The complainant could be heard telling Chambers several times over the course of three phone calls that they did not wish to be paid off.

'Not fair'

Chambers said to the complainant: "This is a real lesson for you that there is no justice in the world and that the world is not fair."

The complainant later decided not to pursue legal action but instead sought justice via the Senedd's standards process.

Whilst still employed by Jones, Chambers continued to contact the complainant throughout the police and standards investigations in a bid to get them to drop their complaint.

The whistleblower said the communications became so relentless that they decided to block Chambers' number.

Chambers told Nation.Cymru he had not given permission for the calls to be recorded and that he had not been instructed by Jones herself to call or text the complainant but had done so on his own behalf.

The Senedd's internal system shows that Chambers is no longer employed by Jones.

Offensive

Although Jones has been cleared by the Commissioner over allegations about her expenses - Bain found she had still broken several Senedd rules.

Last year, Nation.Cymru published a number of offensive remarks exchanged in Jones' work group chat by both the MS and her staff.

Bain concluded that Jones broke the Senedd's discrimination rules when she sent a text message describing the Chinese owners of TikTok as "chinky spies".

The Commissioner also found that Jones broke Senedd rules when she failed to challenge Ed Sumner's "offensive and unacceptable comments".

Bain's findings have been submitted to the Senedd Standards Committee and will be considered next week.

The complainant has written to the Committee expressing "deep dissatisfaction" with the Commissioners handling of the complaint which they say has denied them of "a fair and reasonable process".

They say witnesses who spoke up for Jones were given undue weight "despite clear political motives" and that some witnesses were not asked key questions that would have been "essential to testing the truth".

The complainant wrote: "It was Laura who instructed me to make the false claims in question and who benefitted from them. The contemporaneous messages are unambiguous, yet the Commissioner accepted Laura’s misleading interpretation of them. This failure again reflects a process more concerned with protecting a Member than establishing the truth

"I urge the Committee to consider these concerns seriously. The Commissioner’s handling of my case failed to account for my disability, failed to acknowledge the impact of the toxic environment I was in, and failed to deal properly with evidence that pointed to misconduct by the Member.

"The result is that I have been left not only let down but effectively silenced by a process that was supposed to protect fairness and accountability.

"I am appalled by the outcome and how this will serve to allow Laura and other Members to continue in this behaviour, using staffers as scapegoats. This has never been anything more than trying to do the right thing and the fact that the Commissioner has framed it that I am somehow trying to get revenge, is appalling."