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Daniel Korski

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Daniel Korski
CBE
BornApril 1977 (age 47)
Copenhagen,[1] Denmark
Alma mater
Political partyConservative
SpouseFiona Mcilwham

Daniel Korski CBE (born April 1977[2]) is a UK-based Danish political adviser and businessperson. He worked as deputy head of the Number 10 Policy Unit for David Cameron and served as a vice-president of the Jewish Leadership Council. He founded the business PUBLIC, which aims to support technology companies to secure public sector contracts.

Early life and career

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Daniel Korski was born in Denmark in 1977.[3][4] His mother was among Jewish people expelled from Poland during the 1968 Polish political crisis.[5]

Korski moved to the United Kingdom in 1997.[6] He graduated from the London School of Economics in 2000 and the University of Cambridge in 2001.[5]

Korski reported for The Spectator as a war correspondent in Libya.[6] In 2008, he was described as a "Balkans expert" working at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), a think tank.[7] In 2011, he was working as a senior policy fellow for the ECFR and running the Middle East programme there.[8][9] In 2012, he was appointed as a strategic adviser to Catherine Ashton, then working as High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.[3]

Political and business career

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Korski worked as an adviser to the Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell.[10] He later served as deputy head of the Number 10 Policy Unit for the Conservative prime minister David Cameron from 2013 to 2016.[6] In 2013, his proposal to charge foreign students to attend state schools in the UK was rejected after criticism by government departments and the Liberal Democrats.[11] In 2015, he was criticised for putting pressure on the Greater London Authority over proposed restrictions to Uber, with Korski and Cameron opposed to proposed regulations that would limit the company.[12][13] He described proposed restrictions as "insane and luddite".[14] He met with Uber executives on several occasions, at 10 Downing Street, at their headquarters in California and at a private dinner.[14] His behaviour was described as lobbying for the company, a charge Korski denied.[14][15] The Information Commissioner's Office investigated why 10 Downing Street had denied that Korski's correspondence with City Hall existed.[16]

Also in 2015, Korski developed proposals to end the use of cash in the UK by 2020 to "to drive up productivity and disrupt some forms of criminal activity", which the chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne rejected.[17]

During the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, Korski helped run the Stronger in campaign supporting the UK remaining in the European Union.[15] He met European diplomats and told them to "think twice" before criticising the 2015–2016 United Kingdom renegotiation of European Union membership.[14] Korski texted and called John Longworth, the chair of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), and then spoke to the president of the BCC, shortly before Longworth was suspended from his role as chair of the BCC for supporting the UK leaving the EU.[18][19][20] Korski was accused by the anti-EU politician Bernard Jenkin of breaking the code of conduct for special advisers over tweets in support of remaining in the European Union.[21] He "left frontline politics" in 2016.[6]

In 2017, Korski started the business Public.io (later branded PUBLIC), which supported technology companies to work with UK public services.[22] He said the business would provide support and advice about the public sector but not engage in lobbying.[15] The model required companies to give a 3% equity share.[23] He advertised connection to "GovStart speakers" including special advisers to ministers, some of whom were removed from listings after BuzzFeed News made inquiries about Cabinet Office clearance.[23] Initially, he selected ten companies and projects to "explore which public services to target and build up contacts in the relevant areas" for six months. He presented the ideas of these companies at 10 Downing Street.[23] In 2018, he chaired a conference about technology in government, "GovTech", which was attended by world leaders.[24]

In 2019, Korski was appointed to a panel advising the trade secretary Liz Truss about freeport proposals.[25] He worked on the Tom Tugendhat July–September 2022 Conservative Party leadership election campaign.[26] Korski applied to be the Conservative Party's candidate in the 2024 London mayoral election. He proposed implementing a levy on hotel stays to fund new police programmes and supported road pricing as an alternative to expansion of London's Ultra Low Emission Zone.[6] He withdrew from the selection procedure after the television producer Daisy Goodwin accused him of having groped her while working at 10 Downing Street.[27] He resigned as chief executive of PUBLIC in August 2023 while remaining a director and major shareholder.[28]

Personal life

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Korski is married to Fiona Mcilwham, who served as ambassador to Albania from 2009 to 2012 and was appointed as private secretary to Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex in 2019.[29] Korski served as one of twenty vice presidents of the Jewish Leadership Council.[30] He resigned as a vice president of the Jewish Leadership Council in July 2023.[31] He was appointed a Commander of the Order of British Empire (CBE) in 2016 as part of David Cameron's Resignation Honours, for "political and public service."[6][32]

Korski speaks fluent Danish, English and Swedish.[33]

Assault allegation

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On 26 June 2023, The Times published an article by senior British television producer Daisy Goodwin who accused Korski of groping her breasts during a meeting Korski had invited her to attend at 10 Downing Street, and comparing her to a Bond girl.[34] The alleged incident occurred in the Thatcher Drawing Room where the pair had just finished discussing Goodwin's proposal to make a TV documentary about the Cameron government's work to support British businesses in the export market. Explaining that she never felt in fear of Korski, she said of the incident, "I suppose [it] could legally be called sexual assault".[34]

While The Daily Telegraph had previously named Korski in a 2017 article relating to the widely discussed allegation, Goodwin had never publicly identified a perpetrator.[35] The Telegraph reported Korski denying the allegation and saying: "I am shocked to find this is in any way connected to me. I met with Mrs Goodwin in No 10 twice I think, and she may have met others too. But I categorically deny any allegation of inappropriate behaviour. Any such allegation would not only be totally false but also totally bizarre."[35]

Goodwin stated that she was naming Korski in The Times article because of her feelings of anger on learning weeks earlier that Korski had put himself forward as a Conservative Party candidate for the 2024 election race for Mayor of London. "If there are other women who have had similar experiences with him I hope this article will encourage them to come forward," wrote Goodwin. "Because if this is a pattern of behaviour then the people of London deserve to know ... I write not out of revenge but to send out a signal to him, and to all men who mistreat women. Don't think that you will get away with it."[34]

On 28 June 2023, Daisy Goodwin filed an official complaint to the cabinet office about Korski's alleged behaviour.[36] Korski withdrew his candidacy for the mayor of London election that same afternoon.[27]

In August 2023, three further women made allegations of sexual misconduct against Korski to the Financial Times newspaper. One of the alleged victims was a senior government official.[28]

References

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  1. ^ "Gove backs tech-bro Korski for London mayor". Reaction.life. 6 June 2023.
  2. ^ "Daniel KORSKI personal appointments - Find and update company information - GOV.UK".
  3. ^ a b Pancevski, Bojan (16 May 2023). "EU chief's £150,000 image makeover". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  4. ^ "Jewish refugees' son in race to become Tory London mayor candidate". www.thejc.com. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
  5. ^ a b Harpin, Lee. "JLC vice-president Korski enters London Tory mayoral race". www.jewishnews.co.uk. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Lydall, Ross (16 May 2023). "Daniel Korski enters London Tory mayoral race with plans to scrap Ulez expansion". Evening Standard. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  7. ^ Tisdall, Simon (22 July 2008). "Hopes rise that fugitive general may finally be flushed out". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  8. ^ Eriksen, Lars; Harding, Luke (16 September 2011). "Helle Thorning-Schmidt defies 'curse of Kinnock' to become Danish PM". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  9. ^ Borger, Julian (20 October 2011). "A new chapter for Libya, but will the victors stay united?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  10. ^ "Former No 10 aide denies groping top producer in Downing St". Politics Home. 25 February 2020. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  11. ^ "Cameron in u turn over invitation to foreign pupils". The Times. 16 May 2023. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  12. ^ Godwin, Richard (5 June 2018). "Is Uber's PR offensive a cynical corporate whitewash?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  13. ^ Pickard, Jim (27 March 2017). "David Cameron 'lobbied on behalf of Uber' in London". Financial Times. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  14. ^ a b c d Mason, Rowena; Goodley, Simon; Lawrence, Felicity (11 July 2022). "'We needed Dave and George to lean on Boris': Uber's battle for London". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  15. ^ a b c Butcher, Mike (3 April 2017). "Former No. 10 aide Daniel Korski launches venture to link startups with public services". TechCrunch. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  16. ^ Mason, Rowena (13 April 2017). "Data watchdog looks at whether No 10 covered up Uber correspondence". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  17. ^ Asthana, Anushka (30 June 2017). "George Osborne came within weeks of scrapping the penny". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  18. ^ Sparrow, Andrew (8 March 2016). "EU referendum: Mark Carney suggests Brexit could lead to banks leaving London - as it happened". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  19. ^ Elliott, Francis (16 May 2023). "Row deepens over business leader's resignation". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  20. ^ Loizou, Kiki (16 May 2023). "How a lobbyist snubbed his paymasters to back Brexit". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  21. ^ Stewart, Heather; Watt, Nicholas (10 March 2016). "David Cameron: economic shock of EU exit 'not a price worth paying'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  22. ^ Walker, Amy; Gayle, Damien (30 March 2020). "UK coronavirus live: Dominic Raab announces £75m plan to fly stranded Britons home – as it happened". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  23. ^ a b c Conte, Marie Le (5 April 2017). "A Former Number 10 Aide Stopped Offering "Paid Access" To Government Special Advisers". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  24. ^ Crerar, Pippa (12 November 2018). "Hancock to tell summit of goal to revolutionise NHS with new tech". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  25. ^ Mason, Rowena (1 August 2019). "Liz Truss's plan for tax-free zones condemned by Labour". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  26. ^ Commentator, Tim Shipman, Chief Political (16 May 2023). "Tom Tugendhat: Wounded in a 10hr firefight in Iraq, now he is set for a new battle". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 16 May 2023.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  27. ^ a b "Daniel Korski pulls out of mayor race after groping claim". BBC News. 28 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  28. ^ a b Hughes, Laura (16 August 2023). "Three more women allege misconduct by former Downing Street adviser Daniel Korski". Financial Times. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
  29. ^ "The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's all-female dream team". Tatler. 19 August 2019. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  30. ^ "Council & Vice Presidents". The Jewish Leadership Council. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  31. ^ "Daniel Korski steps down as JLC vice-president".
  32. ^ "No. 61678". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 August 2016. p. RH3.
  33. ^ Parsley, David (28 May 2023). "Daniel Korski, the Remain-voting Tory London mayor hopeful: 'I represent a very different vision'". INews. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
  34. ^ a b c Goodwin, Daisy (26 June 2023). "Daisy Goodwin: Why I'm naming the man who groped me at No 10". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  35. ^ a b Dixon, Hayley; Hope, Christopher (14 November 2017). "David Cameron aide denies groping television writer at Downing Street event". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  36. ^ Foster, Aurelia (28 June 2023). "Daniel Korski: Daisy Goodwin makes formal complaint". BBC News. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
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