Tory peer Liam Booth-Smith takes job at AI firm he encountered at No 10
A former chief of staff to Rishi Sunak who was made a Conservative peer has taken a job as 'external affairs' chief at an artificial intelligence company that he encountered while working at No 10.
Liam Booth-Smith, who entered the House of Lords last year, has joined Anthropic, which recently signed a memorandum of understanding about working with the government on AI.
His former boss Sunak was a supporter of the UK leading on AI during his time as prime minister, and hosted a meeting where Anthropic was present in May 2023 – which was attended by Booth-Smith as an observer.
The Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba) said Booth-Smith should not engage in any lobbying on behalf of Anthropic for at least two years after leaving the government.
Anthropic confirmed to Acoba his role would not involve lobbying and that it would abide by its terms.
The committee said that Booth-Smith had not had any role in commercial or contractual decisions relating to Anthropic but noted that No 10 had overall oversight of AI policy.
But it added: 'The committee's view is that there remains a risk associated with Lord Booth Smith's influence in government, particularly as he seeks to take up a role in external affairs. Anthropic is currently developing a UK presence to promote its services with a wide range of applications, including with and across the UK government.
'Lord Booth-Smith must avoid engaging in activity that could reasonably be seen as seeking to influence government decisions, including approaching the government, whether special advisers, other officials or ministers about its approach or policy on Anthropic's behalf. If he was to initiate contact with the UK government it would be difficult to manage the risk that this is seen as lobbying.'
In addition to a two-year lobbying ban, it advised that Booth-Smith should not draw on any privileged information available to him from his time in government, make use of any contacts made in government to influence policy, or provide advice to Anthropic on any policy he had specific involvement in or responsibility for as chief of staff at No 10 for two years.
As a peer, Lord Booth-Smith is already banned from lobbying the government on any subject.
Gabe Winn, the chief executive of Blakeney, a lobbying firm, who is campaigning against peers being paid to offer political advice to companies, questioned whether Booth-Smith should be doing the external affairs role for an AI company as well as being a legislator.
An Anthropic spokesperson said: 'Liam Booth-Smith is following all applicable Acoba guidance and the House of Lords Code of Conduct in his role.'
Booth-Smith has been approached for comment.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
37 minutes ago
- The Sun
Missile strikes, deliberate pandemic & protecting royals – inside British military drills for war on UK soil
MINISTERS have warned Britain could face a "wartime scenario" and unveiled plans for how the country will prepare to face threats. A chilling new national security blueprint set out what the UK can expect as Russia, China and Iran ramp up threats. 12 12 12 The stark message came as the PM jetted into The Hague for a crunch NATO summit, where leaders confirmed plans for all allies to spend five per cent of GDP on defence and security by 2035. Sir Keir Starmer admitted the country faces 'daily challenges on the home front' when asked about the growing threat after the security strategy's release. The Government's strategy lays bare the scale of the danger, warning: 'We are in an era in which we face confrontation with those who are threatening our security. 'For the first time in many years, we have to actively prepare for the possibility of the UK homeland coming under direct threat, potentially in a wartime scenario.' The new plan focuses on three key areas - protecting the UK at home, working with allies to strengthen global security, and rebuilding Britain's defence industries and technological capabilities. But the PM is now facing growing pressure to explain how they will afford the huge jump in defence spending needed to meet NATO's 2035 target. The warning comes after Mark Rutte, the Nato secretary general, declaring that without a major increase in defence spending, the British 'better learn to speak Russian'. The strategy said threats from other countries are on the rise. It revealed that the UK has been "directly threatened by hostile activities including assassination, intimidation, espionage, sabotage, cyber attacks and other forms of democratic interference". Annual drills for terror attacks, assassinations and missile strikes Britain will hold annual drills to prepare for a wide range of enemy attacks. The new national security strategy on Tuesday included plans for the exercises designed to test the country's "whole-of-society preparedness". These will include war and other security threats such as sabotage to power plants and undersea cables. Ministers have committed to the annual drills which will test the response to the Government, emergency services and devolved administrations. Possible drills may include a missile strike by a foreign state, a mass terror attack, cyber attacks or the assassination of a public figure. The first drill will be held this autumn and will be codenamed "Pegasus". It will test how the Government and other public bodies would respond to a new global pandemic - five years after Covid-19 wrecked havoc across the country, triggering multiple lockdowns. According to The Telegraph, the drills will involve thousands of civil servants over several months. 12 12 Mock-ups of emergency Cobra meetings Part of these preparedness drills will include mock-ups of Cobra meetings, which are held in an emergency. These are held in the Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms in Whitehall. The meetings are held to co-ordinate the actions of Government bodies in response to national or sometimes regional emergencies. COBRA meetings are also held during overseas events that could have a major impact on the UK. They are held in the event of catastrophic emergencies, including natural disasters, terrorist attacks and major industrial accidents or disruption. For example, following the 9/11 attacks COBRA was used to take the decision to immediately close UK airspace. Depending on the emergency, officials and agencies most closely involved will already be handling many of the immediate decisions. In a terrorist attack, the emergency services and security services will already be responding, while in the event of floods or other natural disaster the Environment Agency, local authorities and emergency services will be coordinating action straight away. Convening it can sometimes be a way for prime ministers to indicate that they are taking action and have a grip of the situation. Between January and April 2020, at least 16 COBRA meetings took place as the Covid pandemic intensified. Sir Keir Starmer also chaired COBRA in response to the 2024 summer riots following the Southport tragedy. 12 12 Cold War-style "protect and survive" films Tuesday's report also promised "greater vigilance to the public" going forward. This may lead to a return of Cold War-style "protect and survive" information films. They were used between 1974 and 1980. These advised the public on how to survive a nuclear attack. Instructions included how to prepare a fallout room, stockpiling supplies like food and water, and recognising warning signals. Escape plans for politicians and the Royal Family According to The Telegraph, the Cabinet Office civil servants are running a complex war game. It would set out the movements of ministers in the hours after a major attack by a hostile state. This would include how senior politicians would escape if London was bombed. It would also plan where the Royal Family would be taken to keep them safe during such an attack. The plans were last updated more than two decades ago. A new network of biosecurity centres Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden told the House of Commons that the plan is "both clear-eyed and hard-edged about the challenges we face". The strategy will boost the UK's capabilities in shipbuilding, nuclear power and artificial intelligence. The Government will also spend £1billion on a "new network of national biosecurity centres". These are aimed at improving the UK's defences against biological attacks. It is also intended to reduce the country's dependence on others, "including the ability of adversaries to coerce or manipulate us". RAF pilots to get nuclear bombers for the first time in 30 years RAF Top Guns will get nuclear bombers for the first time in 30 years — after PM Sir Keir Starmer said we must prepare for possible war. The F-35As will be based at RAF Marham in Norfolk, which housed Britain's air-launched nuclear weapons until 1998. That was the year then— PM Tony Blair scrapped Britain's air-launched bomb, the WE-177. The new B-61 bombs, made by US -firm Lockheed Martin, can take out small areas — unlike Trident 2 missiles on Britain's submarines which can obliterate whole cities. The F-35As can also carry conventional weapons. The announcement came as a new National Security Strategy warned: 'For the first time in many years, we have to actively prepare for the possibility of the UK homeland coming under direct threat, potentially in a wartime scenario.' The Government said the jets would support Nato's nuclear mission. Ahead of today's Nato summit in The Hague, Sir Keir said: 'In an era of radical uncertainty we can no longer take peace for granted, which is why my Government is investing in our national security.' The strategy highlighted Russia's invasion of Ukraine as the most pressing example. And it warned Kremlin-backed cyber attacks and Iranian hostile activity in the UK are also increasing. It added: 'Some adversaries are laying the foundations for future conflict, positioning themselves to move quickly to cause major disruption to our energy and/or supply chains, to deter us from standing up to their aggression.' The strategy said the UK's enemies are spreading disinformation and using social media to "stoke tensions between generations, genders and ethnic groups". Critical infrastructure such as undersea cables will "continue to be a target", the document added. 12
BBC News
39 minutes ago
- BBC News
Bloom's Hearts investment complete - tell us your views
Tony Bloom's investment into Hearts is complete. The Brighton owner has injected almost £10m into the club and has received a 29% stake in non-voting shares."I firmly believe in the club's ability to disrupt the pattern of domination of Scottish football, which has been in place for far too long," Bloom eye-catching quote from the 55-year-old. Hearts fans, what do you make of that? And where can your side go from here? Send us your thoughts
Daily Mail
43 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Halfords flags fragile consumer confidence despite forecast beating profits
Halfords Group has become the latest retailer to flag a fragile consumer environment, despite cost savings driving a better than expected profit last year. The group told shareholders on Wednesday that while inflation 'appears to be moderating and interest rates are falling', the 'negative outlook for employment and the impact of geopolitical instability continues to weigh on confidence'. UK unemployment hit its highest level since July 2021 in the three months to April at 4.6 per cent and forecasters expect increased labour costs to continue to hit the jobs market in the months ahead. Halfords also highlighted Britain's relatively savings ratio, reflecting a consumer base that currently prefers to save rather than to spend 'despite rising real incomes'. But underlying pre-tax profits at the motoring and cycling services retailer rose by 6.4 per cent to £38.4million in the year ending 28 March, above its previous guidance of £32million to £37million. The Redditch-based company, which owns Boardman Bikes, reported achieving around £35million in savings during the year. It said this offset approximately £33million of inflationary costs, largely resulting from a 10 per cent hike in the National Living Wage. Halfords also said profitability benefited from increased prices, favourable foreign exchange rates, and demand for higher-margin maintenance and repair services. The group's turnover flatlined at £1.7billion, although its like-for-like sales increased by 2.5 per cent following growth in both its retail and Autocentres divisions. Halfords noted enjoying healthy demand for kids' bikes, Tredz and the Cycle2Work scheme during the final months of the period, and a further boost to cycling sales since then due to the warm spring weather and late Easter. Henry Birch, chief executive of Halfords, said: 'The business has delivered a strong financial performance, made good strategic progress and has a clear plan in place to tackle external inflationary forces.' Birch joined Halfords in April after Graham Stapleton announced he was standing down following seven years in charge, during which time he helped grow the firm's annual revenues from £1.1billion to £1.7billion. The Stanford University graduate was formerly the CEO of online retailer The Very Group and Rank Group, owner of Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casinos. Over the current fiscal year, Halfords plan to continue rolling out its Fusion strategy, which involves integrating its retail and autocentre operations within the same towns. With 50 locations already trading, the company intends to have more than 100 Fusion garages operating by the end of the year. Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, said: 'Halfords has become the latest retailer to issue a cautious update on the outlook for consumer spending, which comes despite its steady expansion into the higher-margin car servicing business. 'The rise in earnings for the autocentre division suggests the new CEO appointment is bearing fruit. Overall today's numbers seem to provide the justification for the recent share price bounce to the current eighteen-month highs.' Halfords shares were 1.5 per cent lower at 169p on Wednesday morning, although they have still gained around 27 per cent since the year started.
