Adam Werritty (born 18 July 1978) is a Scottish businessman. Werritty is a friend of the former
UK Secretary of State for Defence and ex
Secretary of State for International Trade
The secretary of state for international trade, also referred to as the international trade secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the business of the Department for Interna ...
,
Liam Fox
Liam Fox (born 22 September 1961) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for International Trade from 2016 to 2019 and Secretary of State for Defence from 2010 to 2011. A member of the Conservative Party, Fox has served as t ...
. He lived for a period in 2002 and 2003 at Fox's London flat and was
best man
A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony and performs the first speech at the wedding. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be ...
at his wedding in 2005. The two were also business associates who once held joint investments in the healthcare consultancy firm UK Health. Werritty was reportedly an adviser of Fox's and is known to have accompanied him on at least 18 foreign business trips between 2009 and 2011.
[Wealthy donors 'paid for Werritty to advise Liam Fox']
BBC News, 12 October 2011, BBC. In 2007, when Fox was shadow Defence Secretary, they both attended a meeting with the
Gulf Research Centre.
["'Adviser' Andrew Werritty ran charity from Liam Fox's office"](_blank)
Rupert Neate, Robert Booth, Rajeev Syal and Simon Bowers, ''The Guardian'', Friday 7 October 2011, Guardian News and Media Limited Werritty was also appointed by Fox as the chief executive of the now disbanded conservative Atlanticist think-tank, "
The Atlantic Bridge
The Atlantic Bridge Research and Education Scheme was an educational charity founded in 1997 with Margaret Thatcher as its president to promote Atlanticism, an ideology of cooperation between the United Kingdom and the United States regarding poli ...
".
Werritty made visits to Fox at the
Ministry of Defence (MoD) in Whitehall on 22 occasions in 16 months; Werrity was not security-cleared with the MoD. Additionally, over a 17-month period, ending October 2011, Werritty was present at 40 of Fox's 70 recorded engagements. The uncertain nature of Werritty's relationship with Fox led to an investigation by senior civil servants, initially the MoD's
Permanent Secretary,
Ursula Brennan and latterly the Cabinet Secretary Sir
Gus O'Donnell
Augustine Thomas O'Donnell, Baron O'Donnell, (born 1 October 1952) is a former British senior civil servant and economist, who between 2005 and 2011 (under three Prime Ministers) served as the Cabinet Secretary, the highest official in the Bri ...
. Fox claimed that Werrity had never worked for him either in an official or unofficial capacity despite allegations that he was using a source of advice outside the Civil Service, paid for by private funds.
[Liam Fox friend 'funded by private intelligence firm']
BBC News, 14 October 2011, BBC. Disclosure of increasing amounts of detail of their contact, funding and explanations of their relationship led to Fox's resignation on 14 October 2011 in advance of O'Donnell's report of his investigation.
Personal life
Born in
Kirkcaldy, Werrity was raised in
St Andrews, Fife, and went to
Madras College
Madras College, often referred to as Madras, is a Scottish comprehensive secondary school located in St Andrews, Fife. It educates over 1,400 pupils aged between 11 and 18 and was founded in 1833 by the Rev. Dr Andrew Bell.
History
Madras ...
, where he played rugby in the 1st XV. He was also the 1st year boys school sports champion.
Werritty went to the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
to study
public policy
Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to solve or address relevant and real-world problems, guided by a conception and often implemented by programs. Public p ...
, becoming vice-president of the
Scottish Conservative and Unionist Students branch. He graduated with a
2:2 in
social policy.
He left Scotland to work for the healthcare company PPP and lived in several places in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
and stayed rent-free between 2002 and 2003 in Fox's taxpayer-subsidised flat in
Southwark, near
Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge is a Grade I listed combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, built between 1886 and 1894, designed by Horace Jones and engineered by John Wolfe Barry with the help of Henry Marc Brunel. It crosses the River Thames clos ...
. Werritty was Fox's best man at his wedding in 2005.
Werritty lives in
Pimlico near
Vauxhall Bridge
Vauxhall Bridge is a Grade II* listed steel and granite deck arch bridge in central London. It crosses the River Thames in a southeast–northwest direction between Vauxhall on the south bank and Pimlico on the north bank. Opened in 1906, i ...
, close to
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
. He is a member of the
Carlton Club
The Carlton Club is a private members' club in St James's, London. It was the original home of the Conservative Party before the creation of Conservative Central Office. Membership of the club is by nomination and election only.
History
The ...
and the
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
.
Investigation
Werritty was investigated by
senior civil servants led by
Cabinet Secretary Sir
Gus O'Donnell
Augustine Thomas O'Donnell, Baron O'Donnell, (born 1 October 1952) is a former British senior civil servant and economist, who between 2005 and 2011 (under three Prime Ministers) served as the Cabinet Secretary, the highest official in the Bri ...
.
The Prime Minister
David Cameron first asked for an interim report of the MoD internal inquiry by 10 October 2011. The final report was initially due to be submitted on 21 October 2011 but O'Donnell's finding were released earlier than anticipated on 18 October. Amongst other findings, the report stated that the former defence secretary had blocked civil servants from attending key meetings where Adam Werritty was in attendance and had also failed to tell his permanent secretary that he had solicited funds to bankroll Werritty, he had also ignored private office requests to distance himself from the relationship.
The investigations into Werrity's close ties also revealed that he had visited Fox in the
Ministry of Defence Main Building
The Ministry of Defence Main Building or MOD Main Building, also known as MOD Whitehall or originally as the Whitehall Gardens Building, is a Listed building, grade I listed government office building located on Whitehall in London. The building w ...
on 22 occasions during a period of 16 months. In addition, Werrity was present on 18 overseas trips undertaken by Fox in the course of his duties as Secretary of State. On 10 October 2011 the MoD published a full list of Fox's meetings, from the beginning of his term in office (20 May 2010) to 8 October 2011, and it revealed that Werrity was present at 40 of Fox's 70 engagements in that period.
Ties to Liam Fox
His friendship with Liam Fox began in the late 1990s, when Fox was an
Opposition Front Bench Spokesman on
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
and
Constitutional Affairs and when Werritty was studying
public policy
Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to solve or address relevant and real-world problems, guided by a conception and often implemented by programs. Public p ...
at
Edinburgh University
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted ...
. They had a shared interest in politics and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
.
On 10 October 2011 in a statement to the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
, Liam Fox said that Werritty worked as a paid intern in Fox's parliamentary office when the Conservative Party was in opposition (1997-2010) and at this time had a Parliamentary pass. Fox said records showed Werritty received a total payment of £5,800 for research work undertaken during that time.
Werritty lived in Fox's apartment in
Southwark, London, during 2002 and 2003. The property in which Werrity stayed rent free was mortgaged at £1,400 per month and covered by Fox's Additional Costs Allowance (ACA), part of his MP's expenses.
In 2011, Werritty stayed with Fox at a villa in Spain during an August holiday break at the climax of the
2011 Libyan civil war.
Foreign trips to Dubai, Israel, Washington, and Sri Lanka
Financial backers linked to Israel and a private intelligence firm helped fund Werritty's travels with Fox.
In April 2007, Werritty and Fox attended an official meeting with the
Gulf Research Centre, an independently run body that conducts research on issues concerning the Middle East. The two also attended an Israeli security conference centred on relations with Palestine, as well as Iranian sanctions, which took place in
Herzliya
Herzliya ( ; he, הֶרְצְלִיָּה ; ar, هرتسليا, Hirtsiliyā) is an affluent city in the central coast of Israel, at the northern part of the Tel Aviv District, known for its robust start-up and entrepreneurial culture. In it h ...
in 2009. Fox is a strong supporter of
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
and is a member of
Conservative Friends of Israel
Conservative Friends of Israel (CFI) is a British parliamentary group affiliated to the Conservative Party, which is dedicated to strengthening business, cultural and political ties between the United Kingdom and Israel, as well as between the Br ...
. Werritty is listed in conference proceedings as "Dr. Adam Werritty", an adviser to Fox in his role as Shadow Defence Secretary. In September 2010 the pair were in Washington and met at a defence industry dinner attended by some of the US's leading generals, including
General James Mattis, commander of
US Central Command
The United States Central Command (USCENTCOM or CENTCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the U.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilities of the Rapid Deployment Joint Tas ...
.
In June 2011 Werritty organised a business meeting at the
Shangri-La Hotel
Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts () is a multinational hospitality company. Founded in 1971 by tycoon Robert Kuok in Malaysia, the company now has over 100 luxury hotels and resorts with over 40,000 rooms in Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East ...
in Dubai. The meeting was attended by Werritty, Fox, the British private equity boss and CEO of the
Porton Group Harvey Boulter, and two other Dubai-based businessmen. Werritty had earlier been contacted by a lobbying firm known as Tetra Strategy, whom Boulter had hired at a rate of £10,000 per month, in an attempt to have Fox intervene in a Porton Group legal dispute that indirectly involved the MoD. Tetra are believed to have begun working towards arranging a meeting with Werritty or Fox as early as 25 March 2011. In an email from Lee Petar, Tetra's boss, to Boulter, Werrity is described as the "special adviser to the secretary of state for defence Liam Fox."
Werritty's initial meeting with Boulter in April 2011 led to discussions with Fox regarding the sale of a product called Cellcrypt.
[Fox feels heat as new claim casts doubt on MoD denial](_blank)
Oliver Wright, Whitehall Editor, The Independent, Saturday 8 October 2011. The 45-minute Dubai meeting in June 2011 was primarily about the possible sale of the
voice encryption
Secure voice (alternatively secure speech or ciphony) is a term in cryptography for the encryption of voice communication over a range of communication types such as radio, telephone or IP.
History
The implementation of voice encryption dat ...
software to the British MoD. Boulter has claimed that the matter of a legal battle between Porton Group and
3M concerning Acolyte, an EU regulatory approved rapid detection technology for
MRSA
Methicillin-resistant ''Staphylococcus aureus'' (MRSA) is a group of Gram-positive bacteria that are genetically distinct from other strains of ''Staphylococcus aureus''. MRSA is responsible for several difficult-to-treat infections in humans. ...
, and a deal worth £41 million was allocated no more than 5–10 minutes at the end of the meeting.
According to ''The Guardian'', details relating to the nature of the visit and the business matters discussed suggest that it was "highly irregular". The MoD has stated that there were no officials present at the meeting but that one of those present claimed to have received the impression that all of those in attendance had been security cleared. Werritty did not have such clearance.
On 7 October 2011, ''The Guardian'' reported that Werritty met senior
Sri Lankan ministers on an official visit with Fox in summer 2011. The Sri Lankan trip was originally scheduled for December 2010 but a disagreement with the foreign secretary,
William Hague
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
, saw the visit changed to July despite allegations that the Sri Lankan government supported paramilitary groups in
defeating the
Tamil Tigers
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...
. As a result of the trip questions were raised about the appropriateness of Werritty accompanying Fox on government trips abroad.
["Liam Fox's ties to best man Adam Werritty under scrutiny"](_blank)
BBC News, 7 October 2011. Fox had previously claimed that Werritty had never joined him on such trips but details relating to how frequently Werritty was in his company while abroad later emerged.
Overview of all foreign trips with Fox
Between February 2009 and 2011 Werritty was in Fox's company on many trips abroad:
*Israel, February 2009.
*Singapore, 4–6 June 2010.
*Dubai, 7–8 June 2010.
*Florida, 2–3 July 2010.
*Dubai, 6–8 August 2010.
*Washington DC September 2010
*Bahrain, 2–6 December 2010.
*Dubai, 17–22 December 2010.
*Hong Kong, 16–23 January 2011.
*Israel, 6–7 February.
*Switzerland, 17–21 February.
*Dubai, April 2011.
*Abu Dhabi, 14–18 April 2011.
*Florida/Washington, 22–25 May 2011.
*Hong Kong, 31 May – 1 June 2011.
*Singapore, 2–6 June 2011.
*Sri Lanka, July 2011.
*Dubai, 17 June 2011.
*Washington DC, 30 June – 3 July 2011.
*Spain, 5–9 August.
Reported advisory role
Wealthy Conservative donors including
Michael Hintze
Michael Hintze, Baron Hintze, (born 27 July 1953) is an Australian-British businessman and philanthropist, based in the United Kingdom.
According to the '' Sunday Times'' 2019 Rich List, Hintze's net worth is 1.5 billion, an increase of ...
indirectly provided financial support for Werrity's role as a political and strategic adviser to Fox by funding organisations such as Atlantic Bridge, a registered charity set up by Fox and run by Werrity that was used to bankroll the adviser's various international travels. Hintze, a major Tory party donor, donated £104,000 to Fox's charity. He also provided Werritty with free office space at the headquarters of his £5bn
CQS hedge fund
A hedge fund is a pooled investment fund that trades in relatively liquid assets and is able to make extensive use of more complex trading, portfolio-construction, and risk management techniques in an attempt to improve performance, such as s ...
and allowed both Fox and Werritty to use his
private jet
A business jet, private jet, or bizjet is a jet aircraft designed for transporting small groups of people. Business jets may be adapted for other roles, such as the evacuation of casualties or express parcel deliveries, and some are used by pub ...
. Days before the forced cessation of Atlantic Bridge's operations by the
Charity Commission, Werrity founded a company called Pargav Ltd., which went on to receive a further £147,000 in donations from Tory party supporters and businessmen. Pargav's sole director was
Oliver Hylton, a close senior aide of Hintze's and the manager of his charitable foundation that paid the donations to Atlantic Bridge. It emerged that Hylton, who was initially suspended by CQS following news of the Werrity affair, later ceased employment with the company.
Werritty was involved in a number of secret meetings (the first, on 8 September 2009) organised by
Denis Macshane
Denis MacShane (born Josef Denis Matyjaszek; 21 May 1948) is a British former politician, author and commentator who served as Minister of State for Europe from 2002 to 2005. He joined the Labour Party in 1970 and has held most party offices. ...
, involving himself and
Matthew Gould
Matthew Steven Gould (born 20 August 1971) is a British civil servant who is CEO of NHSX, the body which oversees digital policy and programmes in NHS England. He was Ambassador to Israel (2010–15) and Director General for Digital and Me ...
, Britain's Ambassador to Israel, with the intention of enlisting British support for an Israeli attack on Iran.
Werritty's close ties to Conservative hardliners, it was argued, enabled him to bypass Whitehall officials and helped Fox promote strongly pro-American policies and
Euroscepticism
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek refor ...
in the UK and abroad. In response to revelations about Werrity's activities becoming publicly known, Fox's political allies launched an effort to distance Werritty from the minister by describing him as an opportunist who had "taken advantage" of his personal relationship with Fox and as someone who was a fantasist "masquerading as someone he was not."
Werritty distributed business cards that declared he was an "advisor (sic) to the Rt Hon Dr Liam Fox MP" although Fox claims he requested him not to do so.
[Liam Fox faces further claims over best man Adam Werritty](_blank)
Robin Brant, BBC News, Saturday 8 October, BBC. Werritty also made visits to Fox at the MoD's HQ in Whitehall on 22 occasions in 16 months which led the
Labour Party to request an inquiry into a possible
national security breach. Werritty was able to arrange access to the minister for
private sector
The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government.
Employment
The ...
companies on matters where they could both see commercial gains, despite denials of any role as an adviser.
Fox has claimed that Werritty was not connected with backers of companies who wanted
defence contracts but was instead funded by ideological backers. According to the BBC this meant that Fox was using sources of advice outside the Civil Service and paid for by private funds.
Fox has declared that: "I do accept that given Mr Werritty's defence-related business interests, my frequent contacts with him may have given an impression of wrongdoing, and may also have given third parties the misleading impression that Mr Werritty was an official adviser rather than simply a friend".
[Liam Fox: Why he might go]
Nick Robinson, BBC News, 14 October 2011, BBC.
The former chairman of the
Standards and Privileges Committee,
Sir Alistair Graham, stated that Fox had shown serious misjudgement and the BBC's political editor
Nick Robinson observed that whatever Fox claimed "many will judge that Adam Werritty acted as his adviser...his business cards stated he was an adviser, he booked hotels as an adviser, he fixed meetings with people who believed he was an adviser...he raised funds from people who thought that too...
ndthe sole director of the not-for-profit company set up to fund Werritty regarded him as 'an adviser of some sort to Dr Fox'."
Role in the Atlantic Bridge
Werritty was also responsible for operating The Atlantic Bridge from Fox's office at taxpayers' expense. The conservative "charity" worked in conjunction with a US lobbying group, the
American Legislative Exchange Council
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is a nonprofit organization of conservative state legislators and private sector representatives who draft and share model legislation for distribution among state governments in the United State ...
(ALEC), which allows cooperation between legislators and corporations such as
Philip Morris,
Texaco
Texaco, Inc. ("The Texas Company") is an American oil brand owned and operated by Chevron Corporation. Its flagship product is its fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owned the Havoline motor oil brand. Texaco was an independent company unt ...
and
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hambur ...
in addressing common interests. According to US charity records, Werritty was listed as the UK executive director with an address corresponding to Fox's former room at the House of Commons, No. 341 in the MPs' block at
Portcullis House
Portcullis House (PCH) is an office building in Westminster, London, United Kingdom, that was commissioned in 1992 and opened in 2001 to provide offices for 213 members of parliament and their staff. The public entrance is on the Embankment. Part ...
, which served as the charity's official headquarters. ''The Guardian'' reported that, between 2007 and 2010, Werritty's income as chief executive of The Atlantic Bridge was in excess of £90,000. The charity was established by Fox to help US/UK relations and serve as a reminder of the
Reagan-Thatcher era and Werritty was given a lead role. The charity also functioned as a counterpart to the ALEC-founded Atlantic Bridge Group, a sister organisation in the United States. Following criticism by regulators that the charity was too politically oriented to be eligible for charitable status, the UK wing disbanded in September 2011.
Resignation of Liam Fox
On 14 October 2011, following the furore over Adam Werritty, Liam Fox resigned from his position of Defence Secretary.
See also
The Atlantic Bridge Research and Education Scheme
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Werritty, Adam
1978 births
Living people
Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
Scottish businesspeople
People educated at Madras College
People from Kirkcaldy
People from St Andrews
Scottish Conservative Party politicians
Scottish people of American descent
British lobbyists